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ARGUMENT OF NICARAGUA 



QUESTION OF THE VALIDITY OR NULLITY OF THE 
TREATY OF LIMITS OF APRIL 15, 18^8, 



TO BE DECIDED BY 



The President of the United States of America. 



JVS .A.RBITR.A.TOR, 



1/ 

FILED ON BEHALF OF THE GOYERNiAIENT OF COSTA RICA 

BY 

PEDRO RKREZ^ :ZELE:d6n, 

ITS ENVOY EXTRAORDINARY AND MINISTER PLENIPOTENTIARY 
IN THE UNITED STATES. 

( Tbanslated into English by J. I. Rodkiguez.) 



WASHINGTON : 

Gibson Bbos., Peintefs and Bookbinders. 

1887. 

L 






24976 



/I 




>7 



r-OQ 




CONTENTS, 



PA(4E. 



INTRODUCTION, :^ 

PART FIRST. — Historical Antecedents. 

Chapter I. 

Limits of the ancient Province of Nicaragua, .... 9 

Chapter II. 

Limits of Costa Eica, 30 

PART SECOND. — Elucidation of the Principal Point. 

Chapter I. 

Arguments of Nicaragua against the Talidity of the treaty of April 
15, 1858, 39 

Chapter II. 

The Treaty of Limits was made in strict pvirsuance of the funda- 
mental law in force in Nicaragua at the time of its conclusion, 41 

Chapter III. 

Demarcation of the territory of Nicaragua according to her first 
Constitution, promulgated April 8, 1826.— Nicoya, . . .48 

Chapter IV. 

Demarcation of the territory of f -"aragua according to her first 
Constitution. ^Southern bank of the San Juan river, . . 5G 

Chapter V. 

The Convention of Limits of 1858 is an international treaty like 
any other, and not an unfinished amendment to the Nicaraguan 
Constitution, ........-• 59 

Chapter VI. 

Even granting that the treaty of 1858 involved a cession of terri- 
tory, this cession could be made by only one Legislature, ac- 
cording to the Constitution of 1838, . . . . .62 

Chapter VII. 

Whether the treaty of 1858 was exchanged before it was ratified, 64 

Chapter VIII. 

Whether the treaty of 1858 was rather imposed upon Nicaragua 
than accepted by her, 68 

Chapter IX. 

Whether the Treaty of Limits is null for want of ratification by 
the Government of Salvador, ....... 71 



IV 



Chapter X. 

Whether Nicaragua can repudiate the Treaty of Limits for being 
pernicious, 76 

Chapter XI. 

Constant recognition by Nicaragua, until 1872, of the validity of 

the Treaty of Limits, 79 

Chapter XII. 

Importance of the documents referred to in this chapter for de- 
stroying the effect of the persistence with which Nicarngua has 
maintained, ever since 1872, the non-validity of the Treaty of 
Limits, .83 

CONCLUSION, 89 

DOCUMENTS. 

No. 1. 

Royal Ordinance of February 10, 1576, for the reduction of the 
Province of Tausgalpa, situated to the north of the San Juan 

river, 101 

No. 2. 

The President of the Eoyal Audiencia of Guatemala transmits to 
the Governor and to the Most Noble Corporation of the City of 
Cartago a resolution by which the election of members of the 
Spanish Cortes for Costa Rica and Nicoya was ordered to be 
made at that city. — It appears, from this Document, that the 
District of Nicoya had actually been annexed to Costa Rica 
ever since May, 1813, about eight years before the independence 
from the mother country, 103 

No. 3. 

The first Constituent Congress of Costa Rica directs that the Dis- 
tricts of Nicoya and Santa Cruz should be considered as tempo- 
rarily annexed to the State, and protected as such. . . . 105 
No. 4. 

Measures taken by the Constitutional Assembly of Costa Rica to 
carry into eiecution the Federal Decree which annexed the Dis- 
trict of Nicoya to her own territory, ..... 106 
No. 5. 

Extracts from the Constitution of the State of Nicaragua of April 
8, 1826, showing that at that time the District of Guanacaste or 
Nicoya was not an integral part of the State, but had been, by 
its own will, and with the sanction of the Federal Power, an- 
nexed to the bordering State of Costa Rica, .... 107 
No. 6. 

Schedule showing the way in which the districts of the State of 
Costa Rica should elect their deputies, ..... 110 



No. 7. 

The District of Nicoya called to take part in the election of the 
Supreme Federal authorities, by order of the Congress of Costa 
Rica, and as an integral part of the latter State, . . . Ill 

No. 8. 

Nicoya is granted the right to take part in the election of the Su- 
preme authorities of the State of Costa Eica according to the 
Constitution thereof, ......... 113 

No. 9. 

The Nicaraguan territory ends at the La Flor river, . . . 115 

No. 10. 

The Constitutional Assembly of Costa Rica enacts several meas- 
ures for the cultivation of certain lands belonging to the State, 
situated on the right bank of the San Juan del Norte river, . 116 
No. 11. 

The village of Guanacaste is raised by the Government of Costa 
Rica to the category of a town, ...... 119 

No. 12. 

The town of Santa Cruz (in the District of Nicoya) has a Repre- 
sentative in the Assembly of the State of Costa Rica, . . 120 

No. 13. 

Instructions given to the Special Commissioner of the Govern- 
ment of Costa Rica to visit the Districts of Nicoya and Bagaces, 121 
No. 14. 

Classification of the towns of Costa Rica in reference to home 
government and Treasury matters, 124 

No. 15. 

Guanacaste is declared to be one of the five judicial districts of 
Costa Rica, .......... 126 

No. 16. 

The faithfulness of the District of Nicoya, and its services subse- 
quent to its incorporation to Costa Rica, are recognized and 
rewarded, ........... 127 

No. 17. 

The rank and title of City is given to the town of Guanacaste in 
recognition of the services rendered by it to the State by resist- 
ing the invasion of Manuel Quijano, .... 129 

No. 18. 

Schedule for the election of deputies to the Constituent Assembly 
of the State, at the rate of one deputy for each 5.000 souls, and 
^ fractions of that unit to the mimber of 3.000.— The letter A. 
means the place where the parochial electors must meet, and 
the letter B. shows the place where the district electors must 
meet, 131 



VI 



No. 19. 

The Constituent Assembly of Nicaragua of 1838 gives power to 
the Executive to enter into a treaty with the Envoy of Costa 

Eica, 132 

No. 20. 

Law enacted by the Constituent Assemblj' of Nicaragua on De- 
cember 21, 1838, to carry into effect Article II of the Constitu- 
tion of the same year, ........ 133 

No. 21. 

Provisions of the Decree of Bases and Guarantees of March 8, 
1841, in regard to Costa Rican Territory, 135 

No. 22. 

The Constituent Assembly of Costa Rica of 1842 declai'ed that 
the Province of Guanacaste is an integi-al par' of the national 
territory, and that it is incumbent upon the 'jtonor of the na- 
tion to repel the aggression attempted i)y N'jaragua, . . 137 
No. 23. 

Revenue posts are established on the Sai ■ '"nui and La Flor rivers, 139 
No. 24. 

The Congress of Costa Rica approves tl tive Decree which 

establishes military revenue posts rapiquf river and 

the western frontier of Nicaragua, . .... 141 

No. 25. 

The road which leads to the La Flor riv^r, the frontier of the 
States of Costa Rica and Nicaragua, ic> ordered to be repaired, 142 

No. 26. 

Bases for the formation of a Company, named the Sarapiqui Com- 
pany, for the opening of a road from San Jose to the Sarapiqui 
river, and for the navigation of the said river, in order that the 
exportations of Costa Rica may be made through the San Juan 
river, ... ......... 144 

No. 27. 

Costa Rica prohibits the navigation^of the San Cdrlos river, an 
affluent of the San Juan, and prescribes penalties for the trans- 
gressors, 147 

No. 28. 

Costa Rica grants to the firm of Kirkland & Geering the privilege 
of steam navigation on the Sapod river, and of establishing a 
route of transit from the Bolanos Bay to the Lake of Nicara- 
gua ; the grantees being authorized to use the waters of the 
Lake and of the San Juan and Colorado rivers, in so far as they 
belong to Costa Rica. 148 



Vll 



No. 29. 

The Government of Costa Rica accepts the apology made by the 
Government of Nicaragua for having trespassed with its forces 
upon the dividing line between the two States, that is, the La 
Flor river, boundary of the Costa Eican Province of Guana- 
caste, ............ 150 

No. 30. 

Congratulation of the people of Leon to the Costa Eican Army 
upon the seizure of the steamers and its control of the river 
and Lake, . 153 

No. 31. 

Seizure of the steamers of the San Juan river and the Lake of 
Nicaragiia.— Official news from the Army. — Another triumph. 
— Go ahead I — The war nearly at an end, ... . 154 

No. 32. 

Proclamation of the President of Costa Eica upon the seizure of 
the steamers and the control of the San Juan river and the 
Lake of Nicaragua, ......... 156 

No. 33. 

Opinion of the Government of Guatemala in regard to the action 
of Costa Eica during the war against Walker, and especially in 

the affair of the seizure of the steamers, 158 

No. 34. 

What happened in Nicaragua after the seizure of the steamers by 
the Costa Eican forces, ........ 159 

No. 35. 

What, in 1857, was thought in Nicaragua in regard to the blow 
inflicted by Costa Eica upon Walker on the San Juan river and 
the Lake of Nicaragua, . . . . . . . 161 

No. 36. 

The public opinion of Nicaragua in regard to Costa Eica in 1857, 163 
No. 37. 

Gratuitous grant of lands along the course of the Sarapiqui river 
down to its confluence with the San Juan river, for agricultural 
purposes Ig^ 

No. 38. 

Provisions of the Nicaraguan Constitution of August 19, 1858, in 
regard to limits and the division of the National territory, . 167 

No. 39. 

Schedule of the Judicial Division of the territory of the Eepublic 
of Nicaragua, •-....... 170 



VUl 



No. 40. 

A road is ordered to be opened from the Capital to the Sarapiqui 

river, 173 

No. 41. 

Concessions made by Costa Rica for steam navigation upon the 
Sarapiqui and San Carlos rivers, and for carrying the mail from 
the wharf on the Sarapiqui river to San Juan del Norte and vice 
versa, ............ 174 

No. 42. 

Costa Rica is recognized as a party to the canal grant made to 

Mr. Belly, 175 

No. 43. 

A tax for the benefit of the public instruction of the Province of 
Guanacaste is levied upon the exportation of wood shipped on 
the Pacific coast between Cape Blanco and the Gulf of Salinas, 170 
No. 44. 

New riales euacted in regard to timber within the zone of the Sara- 
piqui and other rivers of the Republic on the Atlantic side, . 178 
No. 45. 

Costa Rica approves the contract of interoceanic canal entered 

into with Mr. Felix Belly, of Paris, 181 

No. 46. 

Territorial Division of the Republic of Costa Rica for Electoral 
purposes, after the treaty of limits of April 15, 1858, . .182 

No. 47. 

The Custom authorities of Costa Rica exercising jurisdiction on 
the frontier established by the treaty of 1858, .... 183 
No. 48. 

Concessions made by Costa Rica for Steam Navigation on the 
Sarapiqui, San Cdrlos, and other rivers tributaries of the San 
Juan river, and the Lake of Nicaragua, and for the building of 
a road from the interior of Costa Rica to the Sarapiqui river, 
or to any other river affluent to the San Juan, . . . 185 

No. 49. 

Municipal territorial division of Costa Rica subsequent to the 

treaty of limits of 1858, 187 

No. 50. 

Grant made in favor of Don Jose Antonio Chamorro for the build- 
ing of a road to the banks of the San Juan river, . . . 188 
No. 51. 

Measures taken in regard to the Guatuso Indians, occupying the 
plains of the same name in the Rio Frio river in the territorial 
jurisdiction of the Province of Alajuela, south of the Lake of 
Nicaragua and the San Juan river, ...... 189 



IX 



No. 52. 

Dr. Don Epaminondas Uribe, Commissionfcr of the Government 
of Costa Eica, visits the San Juan and San Carlos rivers, and 
suggests some measures for the foundation of two Costa Eican 
towns — one at Ptinta de Castilla and another at the confluence 
of the San Carlos and the Penas Blancas rivers, . . . 192 

No. 53. 

The official organ of Nicaragua publishes the estimate of the work 
to be done on the river and port of San Juan according to sur- 
veys made by a mixed commission agreed upon between the 
Governments of Costa Eica and Nicaragua, .... 197 

No. 54. 

Editorial of the " Gaceta Oficial " of Nicaragua on the reception 
in Costa Eica of the Nicaraguan Minister, Don Mariano Mon- 
tealegre. — Costa Eica is recognized as bordering upon the San 
Juan river, as joint possessor of the navigation of the same, and 
as much interested as Nicaragua in the Interoceanic Canal en- 
terprise, ........... 198 

No. 55. 

The exportation through San Juan de Nicaragua of the natural 
products of the public lands of Costa Eica, such as timber, sar- 
saparilla, rubber, balsams, resin, &c., is prohibited, in order to 
prevent the natural wealth of the northern section of the Ee- 
public from being destroyed, ....... 201 

No. 56. 

The territorial jurisdiction of the " Comarca " (district) of Limon 
is created. — The limits given to it are from Punta de Castilla, 
frontier of Nicaragua, to the United States of Colombia, . . 203 

No. 57. 

Origin of the Martinez-Jerez Duumvirate. (From Memorias para 
la historia de la campana nacional contra el filibusterismo — 
1856 y '57 por Jer6nimo Perez). Masaya. 1873, . . .205 

Chronological epitome or historical facts connected with 

THE territorial DEMARCATION OB CoSTA RlCA AND 

Nicaragua, 206 



INTRODUCTION. 



INTRODUCTION. 



Two are the questions snbraitted to the arbitration of the 
President of the United States of America under the treaty of 
Guatemala of December 24, 1886. One, which is the princi- 
pal, refers to the treaty of limits between Costa Rica and Nic- 
aragua, which was concluded on April 15, 1858, and to its 
validity or nullity. The other, which is supplementary, or 
secondary, refers to the interpretation to be given to certain 
points in the said treaty alleged to be doubtful. 

It was stipulated in the treaty of arbitration that both ques- 
tions should be simultaneously discussed and decided, upon such 
proceedings, and within such periods of time, as follows : 

1st. Within ninety days, subsequent to the acceptance of the 
Arbitrator, the arguments and documents of the two parties 
should be filed. 

2d. Within eight days, subsequent to the above, the argu- 
ments and documents of each party should be communicated 
to the other. 

3d. Within thirty days, subsequent to the above, the reply of 
each pai'ty to the argument and docuuients of the other, should 
be submitted. 

4th. Within a period of six months, and by only one and 
the same award, all the questions should be decided. 

In spite of this, which under the provisions of the treaty 
of Guatemala is plain, the Republic of Nicaragua has reserved 
for some future time her argument upon the second supple- 
mentary question, and comes and says that she holds herself 
in readiness to submit that argument, when the principal ques- 
tion is decided, or when the Arbitrator declares that the oppor- 
tunity to do so has arrived, by signifying his intention of en- 
tering upon the interpretation of doubtful points. 



The defense of Nicaragua ought to have understood, from 
the unity of proceedings which, under the express provisions 
of the treaty of Guatemala, characterizes the present arbitra- 
tion, that the periods of time granted to both parties for the 
filing and answering the arguments on the two questions were 
not double, but simple ; and that the two questions should be 
discussed together and decided at the same time by one and 
the same award. 

The text of the treaty of arbitration is so extremely plain 
in this respect that the division attempted by Nicaragua can- 
not be satisfactorily explained. But, Mdiether explained or not, 
the fact is that it cannot be allowed, because Nicaragua would 
then enjoy, in the present discussion, an undue advantage over 
Costa Rica, by being permitted to make her argument and 
exhibit her documents, at such time before the decision as 
might be suitable to her purposes, while Costa Rica would be 
deprived of the right of reading and refuting, at the time 
provided for by the treaty, the arguments and proofs of her 
opponent. 

The treaty of arbitration plainly states that the first period 
of the debate, and no other, is the one wherein the briefs and 
evidence of either party should be filed. Neither of tliem can 
pretend to enjoy other and different opportunities, in regard to 
time, or otherwise, as are granted by the treaty. 

The Government of Costa Rica has never entertained any 
doubt as to the construction to be placed upon the treaty of 
limits, the language of which seems to it, and to everybody 
else not prejudiced, to be perfectly plain. And yet, acting 
with that sincerity which becomes a controversy of this kind, 
it has not hesitated to frankly express its own opinion upon all 
the questions which the Government of Nicaragua propounded. 

But the Nicaraguan Government, after presenting the strange 
doubts which occurred to it, and formulating thena by means of 
extremely brief propositions difficult to understand, instead of 
explaining them as frankly and extensively as required, within 
the time in which such a thing was possible, now comes and says 



that it will enter into such explanations afterwards, at such mo- 
ment as may be pleasing to it, or suitable to its purposes. 

The Government of Costa Rica refuses its assent to any 
change or alteration in this way by the Nicaraguan Govern- 
ment of the provisions of the treaty of Guatemala. 

I must say, also, a few words in regard to another point, 
of no less importance, referring to the distinction necessarily 
to be made between the questions which are the exclusive 
subject of the present arbitration and another different ques- 
tion which may eventually arise hereafter. The questions 
submitted to the present arbitration are, in substance, whether 
THE treaty of April 15, 1858, is or is not valid, and what is 
the construction to he placed upon some of its provisions f The 
other question — an essentially different one, — not actual, but 
potential or eventual, — which will never arise except in case 
that the treaty of 1858 is adjudged void, — which is not, by any 
means, before the Arbitrator, — and which, if it ever comes up, 
will come up in a form and on terras not yet agreed upon by 
the two Republics, — is to find out which were the respective 
territorial limits of the two countries prior to 1858. 

In other words, the question now under discussion is not 
" WHICH were the territorial limits of Costa Rica and Nic- 
aragua prior to 1858 ?" but simply to determine the validity 
or invalidity of the treaty concluded on the 15th of April, 
1858, for the purpose of fixing the frontier between the two 
Republics. 

Whatever has been said, or may be said, by either party 
in regard to limits prior to 1858 has to be considered only 
as historical illustrations, but never as a matter of direct, im- 
mediate, and actual concern. 

No opportunity exists at present to pass judgment upon the 
strength and efficiency of the Royal Ordinances and Letters- 
Patent of the Crown of Spain, speaking of limits between 
Costa Rica and Nicaragua, or to decide the questions of pub- 
lic law arising out of the incorporation of Nicoya into Costa 
Rica, in 1824, approved by the Federal Power and accepted 
by Nicaragua by her first Constitution. 



Those matters will be amply discussed at the proper time, 
if the opportunity to do so should ever present itself ; and 
then both Governments shall hie such documents as may sup- 
port, respectively, their different conclusions. 

To decide the question of the day, the only one before the 
Arbitrator, as Nicaragua pretends, upon bases which (tannot 
be established solidly without a previous and thorough knowl- 
edge of the ancient limits, would be to answer in advance a 
question which has not been submitted, nor presented or de- 
bated. It would be to prejudge the question without suffi- 
cient knowledge of the subject. It would be to involve, at 
the risk of nullity, things which the parties to the arbitra- 
tion themselves distinctly separated in the treaty signed by 
them at Guatemala. 

The Government of Costa Rica entertains the firm confi- 
dence that neither the tendency shown by the argument of 
Nicaragua to involve and confuse those questions will find 
any encouragement in the righteous and enlightened mind of 
the Arbiti'ator, nor that Costa Rica wall be refused full defense 
of her rights, and absolute and strict equality with Nicaragua. 



PART FIRST. 



PART FIRST. 



HISTORICAL ANTECEDENTS. 



Chapteb I. 

LIMITS OF THE ANCIENT PKOVINCE OF NICARAGUA. 

The present chapter, as well as the one following, in both 
of which tlie frontiers of Costa Rica and Nicaragua, prior to 
the treaty of April 15, 1858, are defined, might, without any 
impropriety, be eliminated from the present reply, because, as 
it has been said in the introduction, such is not the subject of 
this controversy. But wishing, on the one hand, not to leave 
any portion of the argument of Nicaragua unanswered, and 
thinking, on the other hand, that it is in the interest of Costa 
Rica to show that the treaty of 1858, far from enlarging her 
territorial rights, actually abridged them, it has been deemed 
necessary to devote a portion of this paper, as was done in the 
former one, to some historical considerations, which, although 
relatmg to matters not the subject of the arbitration, are, nev- 
ertheless, conducive, as it cannot be doubted, to the illustration 
of the question at issue. 

The defense of Nicaragua has confused two questions which 
the treaty of ar])itration distinguished with particular clear- 
ness, and the interrogatory, " which were the ancient limits 
of the Province of Nicaragua ? " constitutes a cardinal basis 
of lier argument. In answer to that interrogatory she has 
confined herself to simple assertions, supported only by incom- 
plete and extremely compendious quotations fi'om several Royal 
Ordinances and from different writers; but no document em- 
anating from the sovereign has been filed which shows what 
the limits were during the Spanish rule. 



10 

It is asserted by the defense of Niearagiui that the Desa- 
gnadero or San Juan river belonged ah initio to that Republic : 
but this assertion is not correct, either legally or historically. 
Before refuting it, I must, however, l)e allowed to call attention 
to the change of basis which is noticed in that defense. 

AYhen Senores Don Tomas Aj'on and Don Anselmo H. 
Rivas, Ex-Secretaries of Foreign Relations of Nicaragua, spoke 
for that Republic and defended her, the Desaguadero and the 
San Juan river were not one and the same thing ; and the San 
Juan river had no more than one mouth ; and the Desaguadero 
was situated in the Matina valley far south of the Colorado 
river. ^ 

Now that the defense of Nicaragua is entrusted to other hands, 
the Desaguadero is the same as the San Juan river ; it has not 
one but three mouths ; and the frontier of Costa Rica is not 
to be found in the Matina valley, but on the right bank of the 
mouth of the Colorado river. ^ 

Such variety and indecision in regard to such a capital point 
plainly reveal that Costa Rica has always had reason on her side ; 
and that Nicaragua, much against her will, sees herself com- 
pelled now to acknowledge it, at least, by plainly confessing that 
their Secretaries of State who shouldered the burden and re- 
sponsibility of expounding and defending her rights, commit- 
ted an error. 

The truth is that the Desaguadero is the same as the San 
Juan river, and that, although the waters of this stream have 
several outlets into the Atlantic, the historical and commer- 
cial mouth j9«r excellence, the one recognized by the discover- 
ers of the river, fortified during the colonial regime, the 
thoroughfare of trafiic in the last years of that period, the 
vehicle of Central American commerce from the Independence 
up to some years subsequent to the treaty of 1858, when the 
port of San Juan became deteriorated, was always the mouth 



■ See pages 40 and 41, Argument of Costa Rica. 
"Argument of Nicaragua. 



11 

of the northern branch of the river, the one properly named 
San Juan or Desagnadero, denominations wliich were never 
given either to the Taure or the Colorado rivers, known, both 
of them, in this century, as they were in the two preceding, 
by their own special names. 

The San Juan fiver lelonged ab initio to Veragua and not 
to Nicaragua, hut afterioards it loas common to loth Prov- 
inces. 

Had the King of Spain wished that Costa Rica should en- 
joy the San Jnan river, he would have forbidden her to navi- 
gate it in the navigable portion thereof, would have eliminated 
it from her jnrisdiction, and would have adjudicated it to Nic- 
aragua to the exclusion of Costa Rica. But he did exactly the 
contrary, and the title in which Charles Y mentioned the De- 
sagnadero as being within the limits of Cartago, or Costa Rica, 
is precisely the one in which, for the first time, Nicaragua was 
given a right in the upper part of that stream. So it is, that 
closely following the language of the laws, or Royal Ordi- 
nances, of Emperor Charles Y, and placing upon them the 
right construction, the territory of the lower part of the San 
Juan river belonged to Costa Rica, and the navigation of it 
and of the Lake was common to Costa Rica and Nicaragua. 
That community existed in law and in fact under the Govern- 
ment of the Federal Republic of Central America, and subse- 
quent to it, also, when Nicaragua and Costa Rica organized 
themselves as independent Republics. It lasted until April 15, 
1858, in which Costa Rica deemed it advisable to renounce a 
portion of her rights in favor of Nicaragua. 

In proof of these assertions Costa Rica exhibits the statutes 
which fixed her territorial demarcation, and are clear and pre- 
cise and emanate from the sovereign power. She also cites 
authorities of other kinds, as geographers and historians, but 
only when they corroborate or illustrate the legal provisions, 
not when they are in opposition to them, or contradict them 
without foundation, or err to the extreme of asserting one thing 
in one page and denying it in another. Costa Rica rejects the 



12 

authority of the celebrated historian Antonio de Herrera, when 
that wi-iter is found in palpable and unjustifiable contradiction 
with a Royal Ordinance. With much more reason she refuses 
to give credit to the assertions of Seiior Don Tomas Ayon 
when the}^ are not duly backed by authentic documents of as 
high authority as is required, for Senor Ayon's citations are 
incomplete, and his historical work abounds in material errors 
and inexplicable oversights. 

Costa Rica pays respect to the law, to the law alone, and 
exhiliits the text thereof, which is her title; while Nicaragua 
exhibits no title, and confines herself in her argument to cite 
such fragments from the titles of Costa Rica as she deems 
favorable to her pretension. 

No one knows, therefore, what are the titles which Nicaragua 
has invoked for more than half a century ; and we are forced 
to fill, to a certain extent, the void which she has left in her 
argument. 

Gil Gonzalez Davila discovered Nicaragua and made his 
first exploration between January, 1522, and May, 1523. He 
started from Panama on January 15, 1522, and returned in 
June, 1523. But as soon as Pedrarias Davila knew of his dis- 
covery he wanted to appropriate to himself the fruits thereof, 
and began to persecute Gil Gonzalez, who succeeded, however, 
in placing himself in safety by sailing to San Domingo. 

Pedrarias commissioned Francisco Hernandez de Cdrdoba, 
the Captain of his Guard, for the conquest of the country 
discovered by Gil Gonzalez to the west of Panamd on the 
Southern Sea. Cordoba landed on the eastern shore of the 
Gulf of Orotina, or Nicoya, and founded the town of Bruse- 
las in the early part of 1524. He proceeded in his voyage 
towards the Province of Nicaragua, and he succeeded so well 
that on May 1, 1524, he had reached the vicinity of Chinan- 
dega, where he distributed the booty and granted " encomien- 
das," or repartimientoes of Indians to his companions, not, 
however, without first apportioning more than one thousand 
of the same Indians to his chief Pedrarias, at the place of 



13 

Los Desollados. It was in the same year that he founded the 
cities of Leon and Granada, and sent Hernando de Soto to 
explore the country in the direction of Honduras. 

In 1525 he fortified himself at Granada, and relying upon 
the eventual support of Cortes, who was then at Honduras, re- 
belled against the authority of Pedrarias, who, being informed 
by Hernando de Soto of the defection of his lieutenant, left 
Panama in January, 1526, and went to punish him, ms he did 
in the middle of that year, by causing him to be tried and put 
to death at the public square of Leon. 

AbsoLite master of Nicaragua, but deprived of the Govern- 
njent of Castilla del Oro, Pedrarias succeeded in being appointed 
Governor and Captain-General of Nicaragua. His commis- 
sion, which was issued on June 1, 1527, is at the same time 
the title or cliarter of the Province of Nicaragua, then created 
by it as a dominion of the Spanish crown. 

Emperor Charles V did not define the precise boundaries of 
the new Province, which, as the Royal Patent reads, com- 
prised 

" the lands and provinces of the South Sea coast, towards 
the west, discovered and conquered by Francisco Hernandez de 
Cordoba, who, under your commission, settled in the Province 
of Nicaragua." 

Said Royal Patent further reads : 

" It is our mercy and will, tliat you, Pedrarias Davila, 
during our pleasure, be invested with the Governorship and Cap- 
taincy-General of said lands and Provinces of Nicaragua."^ 

In subsequent royal ordinances and commissions, such as 
the one issued at Toledo on May 4, 1534, in favor of Rodrigo 
de Contreras, in which this Governor was vested with the 
same faculties as Pedrarias, no demarcation is made of 
the territory of Nicaragua ;2 but from the commission of 
Pedrarias and the royal ordinance of April 21, 1529, it can 

' Torres de Mendoza. Goleecion de documentos inedUos, vol. xl, p. 353, 
where the commissiun is found in extenso. 
^Torres de Mendoza. Coleceion, vol. XLI, page 531. 



14 

be seeu that the authority of the Governors was to be exer- 
cised over the land conquered by Hernandez de Cordoba, from 
the town of Bruselas and the territory adjacent thereto, to tlie 
Honduras boundary. As has been said in tlie argument of 
Costa Rica, page 22, this territorial jurisdiction was gradually 
diminished by the c]-eation of the new Provinces of Cartago, 
or Costa Rica, and Nicoya, on the side of the Southern Sea. 
There is not a single commission, a single royal ordinance, 
extending the jurisdiction of Nicaragua, during the XVIth 
century, to the coast of the Atlantic Ocean, and Herrera is 
the first one who, at the end of the said century, spoke of said 
coasts as belonging to her. 

A historical error is committed l)y saying tliat Columbus 
discovered Nicarao^ua in 1502 when he travelled alona: the 
coast from Cape Gracias a Dios to Cariay or to the San Juan 
river. In doing this he did not reach Nicaragua, nor New 
Granada^ either, but he only went along the coast of Veragua. 
That coast was afterwards a part of Costa Rica, and lately of 
Nicaragua. 

The demonstration of this truth is simple. Twenty years be- 
fore the discovery of Nicaragua those coasts were known by the 
name of Yeragua, from Cape Camaron to the Gulf of Darien or 
Uraba. When, in 1509, the Catholic King gave the Government 
of Veragua to Diego de Nie.uesa,the limits assigned to that com- 
m.and were from Cape Gracias a Dios to the Gulf of Uraba, com- 
prising all the present coasts of Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and Pan- 
ama. The Mosquito coast was, therefore, a part of Veragua ; and 
the San Juan river or Desaguadero ran unknown through the 
middle of that Province of Veragua. ^ 



^In his history of the Jesuits in New Granada {Historia de los Jesuitas en 
Nueva Granada), chap. I, the Colombian writer, Don Jose Joaquin Borda. 
says that Columbus discovered New Granada when he saw Cape Gracias a 
Dios at a distance. Senor Ayon is historically wrong in saying that Colum- 
bus discovered Nicaragua, althougH Cape Gracias a Dios is now a part of 
that Republic. 

- Navarrete. Coleccion de los Viajes, die. 

Torres de Mendoza. Ubi supra. 



15 

On Dec. 24, 1534, seven years after Nicaragua was raised 
to the rank of a Governorship and Captaincy-General, Em- 
peror Charles V appointed Felipe Gutierrez to be Governor of 
Veragua, and the limits of his territorial jurisdiction were from 
Cape Gracias a Dios to the boundary of Castilla del Oro. 

In 1534 the Desaguadero was known to exist ; but neither it, 
nor the territory through which it flowed, were reserved for Nic- 
aragua, that river continuing, therefore, to run entirely in the 
Province of Yeragua. 

In 1539 Captains Calero and Machuca explored its course and 
passed out through it to the Northern Sea ; and, although they 
fitted out their expedition at Granada under the auspices of 
Rodrigo de Contreras, they did not think to have discovered 
any unexplored part of the Government of Nicaragua, but an 
entirely new province, the Governorsliip of which they proposed 
to ask for Machuca. But before they had an opportunity to ad- 
dress the King, Doctor Robles, a justice of the recently estab- 
lished Audiencia of Panama, under whose jurisdiction Nicara- 
gua fell, gave commission to his son-in-law, Hernan Sanchez de 
Badajoz, to conquer Costa Wicsi, fro9 a the limits of the Duke- 
dom of Veragua uj) to HonduTas, thus including El Desagua- 
dero, in the Province of Costa Rica. The Audiencia directed 
the Governor of Nicaragua to abstain from interfering in any 
manner with the said Province of Costa Rica,, which was un- 
der another name, the same Government of Yeragua ^ vacant 
by the failure of the expedition of Felipe Gutierrez and his 
flight into Peru. 

The Governor of Nicaragua, feigning to be ignorant that the 
coast of the Caribbean Sea did not fall under his jurisdiction, 
paid no attention to the injunction of the Audiencia of Panama, 
and, fitting out an expedition under his own command against 



Washington Irving. Companions of Golmnbus. 

Sir Arthur Helps. The Spanish Conquest of America, vol. I, page 
298 (with a map). 

Justin Winsor. A Narrative and Critical History of America, vol. II 
(with maps), &c., &c. Boston. 1886. 

'Peralta. Costa Rica, Nicaragua, &c., pp. 89, 725, 747. 



16 

Hernan Sanchez de Badajoz, descended the Desaguadero and 
landed at Tariaca, now Talamanca (Costa Rica), where he 
arrested Badajoz and sent him as a prisoner to Spain. 

In the eyes of the King, I)oth Badajoz and Governor Con- 
treras were gnilty of nsnrpation, because neither of them had a 
direct commission from His Majesty to interfere with the gov- 
ernment of Yeragna, the appointment of whose superior au- 
thority depended exclusively upon the Crown, " because this 
is a matter wliich has to be treated only with our Royal Per- 
son and in our Council for the Indies."^ 

The King disapproved the appointment of Badajoz, made by 
the Audiencia of Panama, and, by articles of agreement with 
Diego Gutiei-rez, of November '29, 1540, entrusted to the lat- 
ter the government of Yeragua on the same terms as it had 
been done with liis brother, and predecessor, Felipe Gutierrez. 
Yeragua was given new limits, and named Cartago. 

Those limits were from Rio Grande (River Aguan) and 
Cape Cainaron to the Zarabaro Bay, comprising the Mosquito 
coast and the interior land, including the Desaguadero, to 
within fifteen leagues of the Lake of Nicaragua. 

The King, by ordinance dated at Talavera on January 11, 
1541, directed the Governor of N^icaragua, and all other au- 
thorities of the Indies, " not to meddle or intrude in the lim- 
its of the Government of Cartago ;"2 but Rodrigo de Contre- 
ras did not give up, and brought suit against Diego Gutierrez 
before the Council of the Indies, asking for himself alone the 
territory of El Desaguadero. 

The Council decreed, in the last resort, what has been said, 
that is, that Gutierrez, by virtue of the agreement entered into 
with liim, had the right to pass through the mouth of El De- 
saguadero, on the Northern Sea, and settle and allot reparti- 



^ Letters of the Council of the Indies to Doctor Robles, Associate Justice 
of Panama, Madrid, April 24, 1540. 

Fernandez. Colecdbn de Documentos para la historia de Costa Rica, Vol. 
iv, p. 76. 

^ Fernandez. Ibidem, page 102. 



17 

niientoes on hoth banks of that river up to within fifteen leagues 
of the lake. (See argument of Costa Hica, p. 32). 

The Desagnadero was, tlierefore, an integral part of the Gov- 
ernment of Cartago. 

Diego Gutierrez made the Desaguadero the starting-point 
or centre of his expeditions. From there he went up as far 
as Granada in search of people and provisions ; and from 
there he started for all the other places wliere he intended to 
establish colonies. In use of his faculties he appointed Fran- 
cisco Calado Lieutenant Governor of El Desaguadero, and 
caused him to act at the same time as Treasurer of the Govern- 
ment.' 

Upon the death of Gutierrez, which took place in the latter 
part of 1544, the Audiencia of Los Confines recommended the 
Council of the Indies to accede to the petition of Machnca, who 
wanted to be appointed Governor of El Desaguadero, or Costa 
Rica, which he had discovered ; and the Bishop of Nicaragua 
made the same recommendation in favor of Alonso Calero. 
But as the son of Diego Gutierrez had the right to succeed 
his father in the Government of Cartago, and, by virtue of his 
faculties, had assigned and transferred his rights to Juan Perez 
de Cabrera, the latter, on February 22, 1549, obtained Royal 
letters investing him with the same right that Gutierrez had. 
Cabrera could not, however, owing to the opposition of the 
Audiencia of Los Confines, accomplish the conquest of Car- 
tago ; and in 1552 he obtained, in compensation thereof, the 
Government of Honduras. 

During the time intervening between the death of Gutierrez 
and the expedition of Licentiate Cavallon to CostaRica, in 1560, 
grave events took place in the other provinces of the Audiencia 
of Los Confines. 

The tyranny of Rodrigo de Contreras was repressed in part by 
the Audiencia. He was put on trial and compelled to go to the 



^ Royal Letter of the Prince Governor (Philip II) to Diego Gutierrez. 
Peralta. Costa Rica, Nicaragua, &c., page 135. 

Benzoni: History of the New World, Hakluyt Society, London, page 140. 
2 



18 

Conrt to answer the grave charges preferred against him. The 
King heard the petitions of the Andiencia and Bishop Valdi- 
vieso, and the earnest request of Las Casas, and snatched the 
Province of ISTicoya from the rapacity of the successors of Pe- 
drarias Davila, who had kept it as a personal " encomienda." 
Nicoya was made a Corregidorship (Corregimiento), to be pro- 
vided for by the royal crown ; and the Andiencia of Los 
Confines, or Guatemala, appointed tbe Corregidor thereof only 
temporarily until the King should act. 

The reforms introduced by the Audiencia met with such a 
bad reception on the part of the Contreras, and so great was 
the anger caused on them by the loss of such a profitable " enco- 
mienda " as that of l^icoya, that they raised up in arms against 
the authority of the King. Hernando de Contreras, the son 
of the Governor of Nicaragua, killed, with his own hands, 
Bishop Yaldivieso ; and his partisans, after this crime was ac- 
complished, cried aloud in the streets^ Liheriy I long live Prince 
Contreras ! 

The Contreras, however, expiated their folly with their 
lives. 

The Governorship and Captaincy-General of Nicaragua was 
abolished, and Nicaragua became reduced to the rank of an 
"Alcaldia Mayor," whose head was sometimes appointed by 
the crown but oftener by the Audiencia of Guatemala. The 
creation of Nicoya as a " Corregimiento " was contemporary 
with the above said reduction of Nicaragua. 

Nicaragua had to suffer again l)y a new revolt in 1554, and 
for eight years she bore the burden of ten "Alcaldes Mayores." 

In the meantime the Province of Cartago remained without 
a Governor ; and the King, upon information of this fact, 
issued at Toledo the ordinances of December 13, 1559^ 
and February 23, 1560, autliorizing and instructing Licentiate 
Alonso Ortiz de Elgueta to conquer and people New Cartago, 
or Costa Rica, situated within the limits marked in the com- 
mission of Diego Gutierrez between Honduras and Nicaragua, 
c-oniprising the Desaguadero and the whole land from sea to 



19 

6ea, as far as the jurisdiction of Tierra Firrae on the side of 
Norabre de Dios and Panama. 

The King revoked tlie authority given Ortiz on Februarys, 
15fil, before the latter left Spain, and directed the Audiencia 
of Guatemala to entrust the conquest of Cartago to Licentiate 
Cavallon, with the same powers as had been given to Ortiz. 
To facilitate his action Licentiate Cavallon had to be appointed 
Alcalde Mayor of Nicaragua. (Argument of Costa Rica, 
page 33). 

Juan Yazquez de Coronado succeeded Licentiate Cavallon as 
Alcalde Mayor of Nicaragua and Costa Rica. He made a 
general exploration of the country east of the Gulf of Nicoya 
and sent Captain Francisco de Marmolejo to the southern 
shores of the Lake of Nicaragua and of the Desaguadero, in- 
habited hy the Catapas, Tices, and Yotos Indians, shores which 
Yazquez included in the Frovince of Costa Rica, although he 
was the Alcalde Mayor of Nicaragua. 

The successors of Yazquez de Coronado, down to Diego de 
Artieda, exercised jurisdiction over the same territor}^ according 
to the Royal Ordinances and letters-patent of November 29, 
1540, May 6, 1541, February 22, 1549, December 13, 1559, 
January 30, February 23, and July 18, 1560, February 5 and 
May IT, 1561, April 2, 1562, April 8 and August 7, 1565. i 

These ordinances, enacted by the King of Spain upon con- 
sultation with the Council of the Indies, were the supreme law 
of the Monarchy in America ; they all refer to one and the 
same territory ; they all include the Desaguadero, as well as the 
bordering land, within the jurisdiction of Costa Rica, subject, 
however, to the limitations established by the articles of agree- 
ment of November 29, 1540, and the sentence of the Council of 
the Indies of May 6, 1541 , and they are the earliest authentic titles 



^Peralta. Costa Rica, Nicaragua y Panama, <&c., pp. 101, 113, 157, 175, 
179, 181, 182, 194, 204, 378, 387. 

Leon Feknandez. Coleccion de Documentos, &c., vol. iv, pp. 143 and 164. 

ToRKES DE Mendoza. CoUccion de Docuinentos Iiiiditos, vols, xi, xiv, 
and xxiii. 



20 

which the ancient Provinces of Costa Rica and Nicaragua can 
invoke in support of their respective territorial rights in the 
region of El Desaguadero. 

A perfect knowledge of these titles is indispensable to in- 
terpret correctly the articles of agreement signed at El Pardo 
on December 1, 1573, by King Philip II and Diego de Ar- 
tieda, an instrument which might be called the territorial con- 
stitution of the Province of Costa Rica. (Argument of Costa 
Rica, p. 32). 

There the limits of Costa Rica are marked, in the follow- 
ing language : 

" The Province of Costa Rica and the other lands and 
provinces included therein, that is to say, from the North Sea 
as far as the South Sea in latitude, and in longitude from the 
confines of Nicaragua towards Nicoy a, straight through the val- 
leys of Chiriqni, as far as the Province of Yeragua, on the 
south ; and on the north, from the mouths of the Desaguadero, 
towards Nicaragua, the whole territory down to the Province 
of Yeragua." 

This demarcation reduced the jurisdiction of Costa Rica- 
Charles Y had extended it as far as the 16th degree of north 
latitude, and Philip II reduced it to the 11th degree. Under 
the former its northern extremity was Cape Camaron ; under 
the latter it was Punta de Castilla, as it is now. 

It is evident that, in mentioning the mouths of the Desagua- 
dero, the instrument does not simply allude to the place where 
the waters of the San Juan river empty into the sea, from 
where the coast should be followed in an imaginary line as 
far as Yeragua. This would simply be to describe the length of 
the Atlantic littoral of Costa Rica. But the articles of asree- 
ment also speak of extent from the Northern to the Southern 
Sea, and refer to all the land that is included between the 
mouths of the Desaguadero and the Southern Sea. To go 
from those mouths towards the interior and find the Southern 
Sea, it is necessary to ascend the San Juan river until finding 
some place " already taken''^ by the Province of Nicaragua, 
as Article 5 of the instrument literally reads. 



21 

It is known that the Nicaragnan limit, on the east of the Lake, 
was within fifteen leagues of the latter, and did not comprise 
the Mosquito coast or the mouths of the Desaguadero ; and no 
one has ever said, as the argument of Nicaragua pretends, that 
under the Artieda title, the Desaguadero is entirely within the 
limits of Nicaragua. Costa Rica maintains precisely the con- 
trary. Nor has any one said, except Nicaragua, that El De- 
saguadero belongs to Nicaragua in the whole of its course, a 
proposition which is in flagrant contradiction of the literal lan- 
guage of the Eoyal Ordinances cited in the former argument 
of Costa Rica, and in the present reply, which cannot admit of 
the peculiar construction placed upon them by the argument 
of Nicaragua, unless by doing the greatest violence to gram- 
mar. 

The Spanish expression, " a las partes de Nicaragua," does 
not mean " within the jurisdiction of Nicaragua," but " in the 
vicinity of Nicaragua," or " towards Nicaragua," or " on the 
side of Nicaragua." A las partes, hdcia, del lado, of those 
Provinces, is not in Spanish to be in them, or within them, or 
within their territory. 

" The mouths of the outlet, or Desaguadero, which is to- 
wards Nicaragua," does not mean that the Desaguadero is in 
Nicaragua, or within Nicaragua, but merely 7iear, or on the 
side of, or in the direction of, or toioards Nicaragua, i 

This has been properly translated into English, in the argu- 
ment of Costa Rica, " towards Nicaragua,'' or as the Depart- 
ment of State did in Executive Document of the Senate, No. 
50, 49th Congress, 2d session, " 7iear Nicaragua:' And it may 
be translated also to Nicaragua, or in the direction of Nic- 

'In reference to this point which, on the other hand is perfectly plain, 
see Syntactic Dictionary of the Spanish language {Diccionario de Construc- 
cion y Regimen de la Lengua Castellana), by R. J. Cuervo, in verbo^A," % 12, 
letter "A." " Eosename, Aurelio, a que parte le dejaste." Cervantes'. 
Galatea (Show me, Aurelius, tohere you left him). ''A todas paries ve un 
ancho calabozo. Jovellanos. (He sees ewrytchere a broad calabose)." 
" Tus abuelos d esta parte habitaban. Reinoso (Your grandparents lived 
on this side). 



22 

aragua ; but never in^ or inside^ or wUhin Nicaragua, mean- 
ing inclusion in her territory. 

Tliat such an idea of inclusion is untenable is shown in two 
ways : 

First, because the boundary, or terminal line, of Nicaragua to- 
wards the east, never reached, before 1573, the months of El De- 
saguadero ; and Artieda had authority under his title to take 
possession in the name of the King of whatever was not al- 
ready taken hetween said mouths and the frontiers of Nicoya 
and the Southern Sea. 

Second, because the same text of the Royal Grant in favor 
of Artieda, wherein the Spanish adverl)ial phrase a ^a joar^e 
occurs — once in singular with reference to the frontier between 
Nicaragua and Nicoya, and once in plural with reference to 
the location of El Desaguadero — shows that the construction 
placed upon it by Nicaragua, in the sense of inclusion, is ab- 
surd, because the boundary between Nicaragua and Nicoya 
could not be inside of or within Nicaragua. The most that 
can be said is, that \tkwas near her, or on her side ; and in the 
same way, where it is said that El Desaguadero is a las partes 
de Nicaragua, that means only towards or in the direction of 
Nicaragua, but not within ber territory. 

The frontier of Nicoya, as recognized by the argument of 
Nicaragua, was the Del Salto river; and not the month, or a 
single point thereof, but the stream itself, which separated 
Nicoya from the territory of the Chomes Indians. The 
Artieda agreement does not mention tlie Del Salto river ; 
but, while it is true that this river was one of the boundaries 
of the territory of the new Province, still there is no reason 
for saying that the Lake shore and the banks of the San Juan 
river were not limits of Costa Rica, since it appears that they 
had been taken possession of in the King's name by Juan 
Vazquez de Coronado, Perafan de Ribera, Don Gregorio de 
Sandoval, and other Governors of Costa Rica. 

The instrument aforesaid admits of no other construction, 
and Nicaragua has not exhibited one single title to attenuate 
its strength. 



23 

The assertions of private writers, and the contents of maps 
representing the territorial jurisdiction of Nicaragua in a way 
different from the one shown by the titles of Costa Rica, do 
not deserve credit. 

This is the case with the quotation from Mr. Squier in the 
argument of Nicaragua. The assertions of this writer have 
no foundation, either in law or in fact, and the dividing lines 
which he draws are purely imaginary. The Constitution of 
Costa Kica of 1825, to which he refers, understood the demar- 
cation of Costa Rica to be the same as contained in the Arti- 
eda Royal grant, and could not exclude, nor did it exclude, 
from the Costa Rican territory the District of Bagaces and 
Las Canas, situated on the banks of the Del Salto river, con- 
quered by Yazquez de Coronado and subjected to the rule of 
Costa Rica in 1562. i 

The Artieda agreement reads that the limits of Costa Rica 
begin on the side of the Southern Sea, from the place which 
they call of the Chomes Indians, from whei-e the name of 
the Province, in the direction of Guatei^ala {gxte cae d la pro- 
vincia de Guatemala)^ is derived, direct through the valleys of 
Chiriqui to the Province of Yeragua. 

It is to be noticed, in the above text, that the phrase, que 
cae a la provincia^ which is herein translated, " in the di- 
rection of Guatemala," was used only to mean the course or 
direction, and not inclusion, since the Province of Los Chomes 
did not belong to Guatemala, and was more than one hundred 
leagues distant from it. 

The Province of Los Chomes was situated on the left bank 
of the Del Salto river, and extended towards the interior as far 
as the source of the same river, and continued towards the south 
alongside the Gulf of Nicoya. It belonged to Costa Rica ; its 
territory is the same as belonged to the ancient Province of 
Oi-otina ; and the city of Aranjuez was founded in it by Pera- 
fan de Ribera, Governor of Costa Rica. 



'Peralta. Costa Rica, Nicaragua, dc, pages 249, 401, 761, 766, 768. 



24 

The District of Nicoja ran along the right side of the Del 
iSalto river, and included the peninsula of the latter name, ex- 
tending itself to the north as far as the La Flor river and the 
shores of the Lake of Nicaragua. 

It is true, and the argument of Costa Rica has so asserted, 
that Nicoya was, at one time, attached to the Government of 
Nicaragua ; but it is also true that the royal authority which 
could segregate it, or constitute it independent, did so segre- 
gate and constitute it. 

When it is said, in the Cavallon's commission of " Alcalde 
Mayor " of New Cartago (cited in the argument of Nicara- 
gua, page 10), that his territorial jurisdiction extended from 
the limits of the town of Nicoya, of the said Province of 
Nicaragua, further on, &c., it is not meant that Nicoya was 
under the jurisdiction of Nicaragua. This language was used 
in the way of an archaism, bj' considering Nicoya as a geo- 
graphical or ethnological dependency of Nicaragua, as Portu- 
gal is of Spain. And the proof is that, precisely in that very 
year, 1561, in wliich|fhe Audiencia of Guatemala issued Ca- 
vallon's commission, Nicoya was already independent from 
Nicaragua, as has been shown, and is witnessed by the Royal 
Ordinance of July 18, 1560, and by the letter of the Audiencia 
of Los Confines, to which the former was an answer. 

The Audiencia writes from Guatemala, on the 18th of De- 
cember, 1559, and uses this language : 

" The Province of Yeragua, otherwise called Nueva Cartago, 
is in this district; which borders on the Province of Nicoya, 
where your Majesty has always one ' Corregidor' (Mayor), and 
where, for the past two years, certain neighboring Indians, 
called the Chomes, have been reduced to submission," &c., &c. 

The King answers : 

" You say that the Province of Yeragua, otherwise called 
Nueva Cartago, is in your district and borders on the Province 
of Nicoya, where we have always a Corregidor. * * * for 
the purpose of peopling Nicoya and her neighboring country 
we have already instructed Licentiate Ortiz, our Alcalde Mayor 



25 

of the Province of Nicaragua, and given hina the proper au- 
thority." 

It is evident that, if Nicoya should have been within the 
jurisdiction of the Alcalde Mayor of Nicaragua, no sucli special 
authority, as the one given Licentiate Ortiz, would have been 
required to govern it. When Licentiate Cavallon came to re- 
place Ortiz, the former had not under his charge the Cor- 
regimiento of Nicoya which the Audiencia of Los Confines 
entrusted to Juan Romo. Vazquez de Coronado, the successor 
of Cavallon, in addressing the Corregidor of Nicoya, does not 
speak to him as to a subordinate, but as to an equal. ^ 

The argument of Nicaragua states affirmatively that Senor 
Peralta has virtually admitted that Nicoya belonged to Nica- 
ragua, because, in a note made by him in the text of the Artieda 
agreement, he says: 

" The Province of Nicoya was finally aggregated to Costa 
Pica in the year 1825." 

But this phrase only means that the aggregation then made, 
had taken place other times before, and w^s then made for the 
last time. And so it is that Seiior Peralta, in anotlier note 
made by him in the agreement with Don Fernando de la Cueva 
(Costa Rica, Nicaragua y Panama, p. 148), uses the following 
words : 

" Let it be noticed that by this agreement, as by the one with 
Diego de Artieda, Nicoya was subject to the Governors of Costa 
Rica, and that her dependency from Nicaragua was scarcely 
anything else than nominal. When it was not governed by 
' Corregidores' or 'Alcaldes Mayores' directly dependent upon 
the Crown, it was rather submitted to Costa Rica." 

The Artieda agreement reads as follows : 

'" 14. And, whereas, between the Province of Nicoya and 
the quarters which you are going to people, and where you 
will reside in the said Province of Costa Rica there must be a 



'Pehalta. Costa Rica, Nicaragua, <&c., pp. 178, 213, 321 to 224. Letters 
vf the Alcalde Ma^or of Nicaragua to Juan Homo, Corregidor of Nicoya. 



26 

great distance, and it is advisable that some person be ap 
pointed there to administer our justice and assist you in every- 
thing necessary or advisable, we do herebj' give you the neces- 
sary authority to send a competent person to the said Province, 
who will be there your Lieutenant, at the salary of as many 
maravedises a year as have been paid to the former ' Corregi- 
dores ' and ' Alcaldes Mayores ' of the said Province," &c. 

The agreement with Don Fernando de la Cueva, dated at 
Madrid on the 29th of December, 1593, is no less explicit. 
It reads as follows : 

" Firstly. It is my will that you shall have the Governorship 
of the said Province of Costa Rica and the Alcaldia Mayor of 
Nicoya — the said Governorship for twelve years, and the 
Alcaldia Mayor for eight, as it was with Diego de Artieda 
Cherino," &c.^ 

If the Honorable Minister of Nicaragua would have fixed 
his attention on all the articles of the Artieda and Don Fer- 
nando de la Cueva agreements, especially Article 14 of the 
former, he would have convinced himself of the fact that Ni- 
coya and Nicaragua were not one and the same political body 
• — one and the same Province — but two independent entireties, 
as independent as they could be, under the sariie Sovereign and 
the same laws. Some branches of their government — as, for 
instance, the ecclesiastic and financial branches — were always 
common, and the superior chief was common to Nicaragua, 
Costa Rica, and Nicoya. 

The argument of Nicaragua also says that, " according to 
the Artieda agreement, the Desaguadero completely falls 
within the limits of Nicaragua." 

That was not the opinion of the legislator. Philip II be- 
lieved to have given Costa Rica as its limits the mouths of the 
Desaguadero, and not the most southern one. Artieda had 
autliority to occupy the three mouths, and keep them under 
the jurisdiction of Costa Rica. 



' Peralta. UU mpra, pages 503 and 649. 



27 

The proof that none of the three mouths of the Desaguadero 
belonged to Nicaragua is furnished by the Royal Ordinance of 
Philip II of Fcluniarj 10, 1576, directing the Andiencia of 
Guatemala to enter into an agreement with Captain Diego 
Lopez to conquer and people the Province of Tagnzgalpa, 
that is to say, the part of the old Government of Cartago 
which was not included within the limits given to Ai-tieda. 

The Audiencia entrusted Licentiate Diego Garcia de Palacio, 
one of its justices to enter into an agreement in the name of 
His Majesty with Diego Lopez. Article 1st of that agree- 
ment reads as follows: 

" Firstly. His Majesty will appoint him his Governor and 
Captain-General for the said Province, which is all the land in- 
cluded between the mouth of the Desaguadero and the Camaron 
Point on the northern side, where the Province of Honduras 
begins ; and from there towards the interior, the whole terri- 
tory ending at what is now the limit of the jurisdiction of the 
Province of Nicaragua and Nueva Segovia, and also of Hon- 
duras."^ 

From the documents and facts above alluded to it appears 
to be evident that in 1576 the Province of Nicaragua did not 
exercise any jurisdictional rights over the mouths of the 
Desaguadero, or over the coasts on the Atlantic side ; and 
that consequently the interpretation given by Nicaragua to 
the Artieda agreement is erroneous. 

Nicaragua never established any colony on the southern 
bank of the San Juan river which was never occupied by her. 
On the northern bank she founded Jaen, on the outlet of the 
Lake, at the place where Fort San Carlos now stands. The 
southern bank was considered to belong to Costa Rica, and 
when the fortress, which is now called Castillo Viejo, was 



^ See Document No. — . 

Torres db Mendoza. Goleccion. Vol. xiv, p. 528, where the document 
in extenso is found. 

Peralta. El Rio San Juan de Nicaragua in Executive Document of 
the Senate, No. 50, 49th Congress, 3d Session, page 38. 



28 

built on the Costa Rican bank of the San Juan river, the one 
who ordered the work to be done and superintended it was not 
the Governor of Nicaragua, but the Captain-General of Guate- 
mala, who exercised high jurisdictional rights over Costa 
Rica. The work was done at the expense of the Treasury of 
the Royal Audiencia, and under the technical inspection of the 
" Adelantado " of Costa Rica, Don Juan Fernandez de Salinas. 

In the time of the Spanish Government tlie San Juan river 
belonged as ranc'h to Costa Rica as to Nicaragua ; and the in- 
nocent use and defense thereof against any foreign enemy 
were, respectively, a right and a duty of the two provinces. The 
free navigation and commerce through that river was not an 
exclusive favor granted to Nicaragua, but a benefit bestowed 
upon the two riparian provinces, in order not to compel them 
to export their products by the far distant ports of Omoa and 
Trujillo in Honduras. 

The same status of community of use and nationality of the 
San Juan river was retained during the Government of the 
Fedpral Republic of Central America ; and the illustrious 
President Morazan was the one who, in the name of the common 
country, and not of Nicaragua alone, or of Costa Rica, wanted 
to make it serve the progress of the world and the common 
good of Centi-al America, by directing, in 1837, John Baily, 
an English engineer, to make that exploration of the San Juan 
river, the Lake, and the Rivas Isthmus for the purposes of 
an interoceanic canal, which became famous. The Federal 
Republic of Central America, not the State of Nicaragua, took 
steps in that direction and entered into a favorable contract 
with the King of Holland for the opening of that canal. 

It was Costa Rica who, in later times, gave the mortal blow to 
William Walker, by occupying with her forces the river banks, 
and seizing the transit steamers which carried provisions and 



' Decrees of the Federal Congress of Central America of June 16, 1825, 
and October 31, 1830. 
DuNLOP. Travels in Central America, London, 1847, pp. 31 and 35. 
Squier. Nicaragua, New York, 1856, vol. ii, pages 253, 257, 259. 



29 

reinforcements for that leader. It was Costa Rica who cap- 
tured Castillo Yiejo and who compelled Walker to capitulate. 

What raoved Costa Rica to throw herself into the struggle ? 
It was not a Quixotic love of war nor a vain ambition for 
glory. It was the common danger, the defense of the common 
soil, the powerful feeling of solidarity which in times of diffi- 
culty causes sister nations to forget their former quarrels and 
secure, by means of their united efforts, the liberty of the 
common country. 

This community in danger, and in the duty of self-defense, 
implied common and equal rights in the navigation of the San 
Juan river which Costa Rica reclaims with justice. 



Ch after II. 



LIMITS OF COSTA KICA. 



The natural limits of Costa Rica are those of the uti possi- 
datis of 1826, from the month of the San Juan river, and fol- 
lowing the thalweg or mid-channel of the same, and continuing 
through the Lake of Nicaragua in a straight line up to the 
mouth of the Sapoa river on the same Lake, to the mouth of 
the La Flor river on the Pacific Ocean. This boundary is the 
one which Mr. Squier called " pretended boundary of Costa 
Rica in 1850." In the copy of the map of Squier appended 
to tlie argument of Nicaragua this line has been omitted. 

" Pretended boundary of Costa Rica " is not a correct ex- 
pression. Mr. Squier would have expressed him>elf with much 
more propriety if he had said " actual boundary of Costa Rica 
disputed hy NimragiiaP Nor is it correct, either, to state tliat 
Costa Rica, in 1850, pretended a boundary, which ever since 
1825 had been marked out by decree of the Federal Congress 
enacted on December 9th of that year. It is still less correct 
to state that the limits of Costa Rica are those set forth by her 
Constitution of January 21, 1825, because the article of that 
Constitution which I'efei'S to limits (Art. XV) was virtually 
reformed and amended by the Federal Congress. Those very 
same limits spoken of as pretended in 1850 were the ones set 
forth by the decree of Bases and Guarantees of March 8, 1841, 
and by the Costa Rican Constitution of April 9, 1844, and by 
all tlie statutes enacted in Costa Rica subsequent to January 
25, 1825, for the organization of the District of Nicoya. 
Therefore, whatever has been said in this respect by Mr. Squier 
lacks foundation in fact. 

Prior to Mr. Squier, the celebrated traveller, John L. Steph- 
ens, had been in Central America in the capacity of Charge 
de Affaires of the United States. He visited Costa Rica in the 



31 

early part of 1840. In chapter XYIII of his Incidents of 
Travel in Central America, Chiapas, and Yucatan, expresses 
himself as follows : 

" At dnsk we reached the river which runs by the suburbs 
of Guanacast.e, the frontier town of Costa Rica." 

Further on he says : 

" I did not wish to continue on the direct route to Nicaragua, 
but to go first to the port of San Juan on the Pacific, the 
proposed termination of the canal to connect the Atlantic and 
Pacific Oceans. The commandant regretted that I had not 
come one day sooner. He mentioned a fact of which I was 
aware before, that Mr. Baily, an English gentleman, had been 
employed by the Government (of Central-America) to survey 
the canal route." 

In another passage, wherein he refers to his remaining on 
the Santa Kosa estate, belonging to Don Juan Jose Bonilla, a 
Costa Rican gentleman, he says : 

" The boundary line of the State of Costa Rica is a river 
(La Flor) in the midst of a wilderness, and he (Don Juan Jose 
Bonilla) was obliged to travel on horseback to Nicaragua 
(Rivas), a journey of four days." 

Mr. John Baily, already named, and from whom Squier 
sometimes quotes {Nicaragua, Vol. II, page 231, &c.,) had a 
perfect knowledge of Central America. In 1823 he translated 
into English the Histcyry of Guateinala by Juaeros. Fifteen 
years later he explored the line of the canal and travelled along 
the whole extent of the frontier of Costa Rica and Nicarao:ua. 
After residing 25 years in the country, whose histor}', laws, and 
topography were familiar to him, he published in London, in 
1850, his book entitled Central America, with a map which 
Mr. Squier adopted and corrected in 1856, according to his own 
ideas and interests. In this work and map Bailj' gives Costa 
Rica, as her limits, from the mouth of the La Flor river to the 
mouth of the San Juan river, following the dividing line of 
the nti possidetis of 1826. 

The leai'ned Austrian traveller, Carl von Scherzer, who 



32 

visited Central America, bj commission of tlie Imperial 
Academy of Vienna, at the same time as Mr. Squier, and in 
subsequent years, says : 

" The Federation was dissolved in 1839, and since that time 
the State of Nicaragua has been an independent Republic, 
although with uncertain limits. The Province of Guanacaste, 
whicli formerly belonged to her, legally incorporated itself 
into Costa Rica ; but the right to the soutliern shore of the 
Lake of Nicaragua and to the right bank of the San Juan 
river remains in dispute, although de facto in the possession 
of Costa Rica." 

" It may be said, under the present political condition of 
things, that the southern frontier of Nicaragua is tlie San Juan 
river, the southern shore of the great lake and the mountain 
which extends aci'oss the narrow Isthmus from the mouth of 
the Sapoa river to the Gulf of Salinas." ^ 

Mr. Bedford Pirn, an officer of the British Navy, who also 
visited the Republics of Costa Rica and Nicaragua twenty- 
seven years ago, and obtained from Nicaragua a railroad grant, 
is even more explicit than Scherzer, and, although writing after 
Squier, expresses' himself as follows : 

" The old boundary, by charter of 1574, commenced at the 
moutli of the river San Juan, and extended up that stream 
within fifteen leagues of the Lake, whence a line was drawn 
due west to the liead-waters of the Rio Salto and down that 
stream to the Pacific. To the north and west of that bound- 
ary line lies the District of Guanacaste, which was annexed to 
Costa Rica after the independence by the free-will of the in- 
habitants in 1824, and their action was approved by the Fed- 
eral Congress of Central America in 1825. Guanacaste has 
since then been in actual possession of Costa Rica, and its 
northern boundaries w^ould, therefore, be tliose of Costa Rica, 
viz., the remaining fifteen leagues of the Rio San Juan, and 
now the entire leno;th of that stream, thence along the borders 



^ Scherzer. Travels in the Free Stales of Central America. 3 vols. Lon- 
don, 1857. Chapter ii, page 35. 



33 

of the Lake to the Rio Sapod, and from the source of that 
stream to the beautiful harbor of Salinas Bay, on the Pacific."^ 

The quotations could be multiplied ad libitum to show what, 
in fact, needs no demonstration ; that is, that the limits of Costa 
Rica, if those of the treaty of 1858 are rejected, are de jure and 
de facto those of the uti possidetis of 1826. ButasJSicaragua, 
in her argument, has quoted from Squier and copied his map, 
Costa Rica has deemed it advisable to show that the opinions 
of Mr. Squier are not " the law and the prophets " among the 
authors. 

Costa Rica, on the other hand, has shown that, besides the 
authority of the travellers and writers above cited, she has on 
her side the superior authority of both the laws and the geo- 
graphic facts. 

It is a self-evident geographical fact that the principal sup- 
ply of the San Juan river does not come from the Lake of Nic- 
aragua, although it is its outlet, but from the Costa Rican rivers, 
some of which are navigable, as the Frio, the San Carlos, and 
the Sarapiqui rivers. 

The importance of the latter is such that Monsieur Paul 
Levy, a French engineer in the service of the Government of 
Nicarr.gua, in an otficial publication made by order and at the 
expense of tliat Government, and dedicated to Don Fernando 
Guzman and Don Vicente Quadra, two ex-Presidents of that 
Republic, 8a3''s "that the San Juan river is no more than a 
tributary of the Sarapiqui." ^ 

Mr. Thos. Reynolds, in a report addressed to President 
Cleveland and transmitted by him to Congress with his Mes- 
sage of the 5th of January last, corroborates the same remark 
in the following words: 

" The great river of the central interoceanic valley of Cen- 
tral America is the Sarapiqui, and the Upper San Jiiau and 



' Bedford Pim, R. N. The Gate of the Pacific, p. 24. Loadoa, 1863. 
^ Levy. Ifotas Geogrdficas y Economicas sobre la Republica de Nicaragua. 
Paris, 1873, with a good map of Nicaragua. 
3 



34 

the San Cdrlos rivers are affluents to it, somewhat as the upper 
Mississippi is an affluent of the Missouri ; but in the former 
case as in the latter the name of the less important of the two 
streams has been given to that formed by their junction. But 
even at the junction of the Upper San Juan with the San Car- 
los the latter dominates in given characteristics to their com- 
bined waters, and where these fall into the still greater Sara- 
piqui those characteristics are intensified."^ 

The Sarapiqui river, as is well known, is exclusively Costa 
Eican, and it being the principal artery of the hydrogi-aphic 
system of the region of the San Juan river, it is just and logi- 
cal to recognize that Costa Kica has the same rights of naviga- 
tion as far as tlie sea, which the Government of Canada 
has in the St. Lawrence river. The Sarapiqui is navigable 
for about fifty miles, and between its confluence with the San 
Juan and the bifurcation of tlie latter to form the Colorado river, 
there are only thirteen. 

The San Carlos river is also exclusively Costa Kican, and in 
the rainy season is navigable for 60 miles. From its mouth 
on the San Juan river to the mouth of the Sarapiqui there are 
25 miles, and to the bifurcation of the Colorado there are 38. 
The Colorado river supplied more by the Pocosol, the San 
Cdrlos and the Sarapiqui rivers, than by the scanty amount of 
water which flows from the Lake, runs exclusively through 
Costa Rican territory, in an extent of 20 miles to the Carib- 
bean Sea, and is navigable for vessels drawing a large amount 
of water. 

From the mouth of the Colorado river to the San Cdrlos 
pier there are 118 miles navigable, 80 within the Costa Rican 
territory, and 38 on the San Juan river, on the part thereof 
whose right bank always belonged to Costa Rica. 

Equity as well as international law, and the laws wliich cre- 
ated and organized the present Republics of Central America, 

^Executive Documeat No. 57, House of Representatives, 49tli Congress, 
2d Session. Condition and commerce of Nicaragua, Honduras and Salva- 
dor, p. ly. 



35 

recognize that Costa Rica has as much right as Nicaragua in 
the San Juan river. 

The treaty of April 15, 1858 restricted and abridged con- 
siderably the rights of Costa Rica. If it falls, Costa Ri(;a shall 
recover by the same fact her former limits, that is, the thalweg 
or mid-channel of the San Juan river to the Lake, thencie a 
straight line to the mouth of the Sapoa river, thence another 
line to the La Flor river, and thence along the course of the 
latter to the Pacific Ocean. These are by all means the legal 
and natural limits of Costa Rica. 



PART SECOND. 



PART SECOND. 
ELUCIDATION OF THE PRINCIPAL POINT. 



Chapter I. 

ARGUMENTS OF NICARAGUA AGAINST THE VALIDITY OF THE TREATY OF 
APRIL 15, 1858. 

The reasons set forth in the argument of Kicaragua, for 
the purpose of invalidating the treaty of limits of April 15, 
1858, which that Republic concluded with Costa Rica, are 
three, to wit : 

1st. That the treaty did not receive the sanction required by 
the fundamental law of Nicaragua for the perfection of a com- 
pact of its nature. 

2d. That the treaty was not ratified by the Grovernment of 
Salvador, and that the guarantee stipulated in favor of JMic- 
aragua, as to Article X of that instrument, was not given effect. 

3d. That the ratitications of the treaty were exchanged be- 
fore it was submitted to the Congress of Nicaragua, and that 
the approval given by that Congress was subsequent to the ex- 
piration of the time agreed upon for that purpose. 

From iiere it might be thought that the Government of 
Nicaragua has deemed it advisable to withdraw from the pres- 
ent discussion all the other reasons which, in its former cor- 
respondence with the Government of Costa Rica, at different 
times, it used to allege against the treaty, — reasons all of them, 
which were, in the belief that they would also be presented here, 
refuted at length in Chapters XI and XY of the Second Part 
of the "Argument " of Costa Rica. 

But this silence, which certainly would have implied an ad- 
mission of the groundless character of the reasons withheld, 
and simplified the discussion, is no more than apparent, because 



40 

the omitted reasons ai-e set forth again, although indirectly and 
incidentally, in the discussion of other points more or less re- 
lated to them. 

An additional reason has now been given — the one occupy- 
ing tiie 3d place in the foregoing list — which Nicaragua never 
presented or thought of before, in spite of the many years 
which the debate has lasted. 

Under the circumstances aforesaid I shall not be able to 
confine myself to a mere reply to the three reasons alleged by 
Nicaragua in support of her claim that the treaty of 1858 is 
void ;'but 1 shall have to consider all other points indirectly 
maintained by her in order that none of her arguments, 
whether formally or informally presented, remain unanswered. 



Chapter II. 

THE TREATY OF LIMITS WAS MADE IN STEICT PURSUANCE OF THE FUNDA- 
MENTAL LAW IN FORCE IN NICARAGUA AT THE TIME OF ITS CONCLU- 
SION. 

The first and principal reason alleged by the Government 
of Nicaragua to deny the validity of the treaty of 1858, is be- 
cause the said treaty did not receive the sanction required by 
the fundamental law of the State for the perfection of a com- 
pact of its nature. 

This assertion is wholly incorrect, as was shown by the for- 
mer argument on behalf of Costa Rica, and as will be now 
substantiated still more by the following considerations. 

For the conclusion of the treaty of 1858, all the formalities 
required by the public law of Nicaragua, in force at that time, 
without the omission of a single one, were faithfully complied 
with. 

The regime which existed at that time in Nicaragua was 
not the regular constitutional one which preceded the revolu- 
tion initiated on May 5, 1854, and followed the Constitution 
of August 19, 1858. 

It was one, in every respect, exceptional and transitory, de- 
voted above all to the political reorganization of the codntry. 
Hence ,it was that the Executive concluded the treaty upon 
bases given to it by the National Constituent Assembly, and 
ratified it in use of faculties for that purpose delegated to it 
by the Assembly ; that the treaty was exchanged and promul- 
gated as law of the Republic by virtue of the said ratification ; 
and thatj in fine, it was not approved by the Assembly until 
after the exchange of the ratifications. All of this might, 
perhaps, have been done differently under circumstances of a 
reo-ular regime, not constituent but constitutional. 

The defense of Nicaragua has forgotten completely what 
was the political condition of its own country at the time in 



42 

wliieh tlie trccatj was initiated, negotiated, ratified, exchanged, 
promulgated, and carried into execution; and so it is no won- 
der that it reaches couchisions which it itself would have re- 
jected if it had placed the question on its proper grounds. 

To maintain that the condition of Nicaragua from May, 
1854, to August, 1S58, was a regular constitutional one, is tan- 
tamount to tearing from the history of that country, and of 
Central America in general, some of its most interesting 
pages, where the record has been preserved of the Nicaraguan 
civil struggles, the overthrow of the legitimate government, the 
usurpation of William Walker, the war waged by the five 
Central x\.merican States, at the head of which Costa Rica had 
the glory to present herself to snatch from the hands of the 
usurper his prey, and secure the common independence, and, 
finally, the ad vent of the dictatorial duumvirate, which, " in spite 
of all predictions to the contrary, not only saved the country 
from the new struggle which threatened it, but wisely con- 
ducted it to its constitutional organization." ^ 

The constitutional legality was represented in Nicaragua at 
the beginning of the revolution by the Government of Gen- 
eral Chamorro and by the Constitution of 1854; but neither 
this Constitution nor the legitimate successor of General Cha- 
morro's Government ever appeared again on the political 
stage of the country after peace was re-estal dished. 

The administration of General Martinez was simply an ex- 
traordinary one, which, although beneficial to the country which 
it helped to organize, had been born out of the revolution. The 
Constituent Assembly, also, was an extraordinary national rep- 
resentation, convoked by the dictatorial duumvirate to recon- 
struct the country. 

The Executive over which General Martinez presided and 
the National Constituent Assembly held in their hands, at the 
time when the treaty was made, all the powers required for the 
conclusion of the latter and for its perfection. 



' Geronimo Perez. Memorias sobre la revolueion de Nicaragua. Vol. ii, 
p. 215. See Document No. 53. 



43 

All that was enacted by the Constituent Assembly, and 
sanctioned and promulgated by the Executive, was law of Nic- 
aragua. So it is witnessed by the statute-books of that coun- 
try, where several enactments of this kind, respected and 
obeyed, botli then, and now, as national laws, can be found 
without difficulty.^ 

To sucli an extent was the regime existing in Nicaragua at the 
time of the treaty of 1858 extraordinary, that the Constituent 
Assembly, by decree of December 10, 1857, decided to sanc- 
tion and enforce in advance one chapter of the new Constitu- 
tion (Chapter xvii), which deliiied the powers of the Execu- 
tive. And this whs done for the purpose that the Executive 
could enter at once, without waiting for the Constitution, 
which was not approved until August 19, 1858, and without 
finding obstacles of any kind, into negotiations with Costa 
Rica for the tiiidl adjustment of all differences in regard to 
limits, and thus secure that peace whicli was so desirable under 
those circumscances.^ The defense of Nicaragua has also for- 
gotten this fact. 

The Constituent Assembly, besides acting in this way for the 
purpose that the differences with Costa Rica should be speed- 
ily and finally settled, enacted also a decree directing the Ex- 
ecutive to continue the interrupted negotiations, and furnished 
it with certain bases for the conclusion of the treaty of limits,' 
approving thus beforehand what might be done in accordance 
therewith. 3 This is another most essential fact wiiich the 
defense of Nicaragua has not been pleased to remember. 

The Executive carried out the instructions given by the 
Constituent Assembly, and as soon as it negotiated the treaty 
of 1858, in strict conformity to the bases suggested by that 
body, ratified, exchanged, and executed it, in use of its facul- 
ties. 



^Tlie files of the Onceia of 1858 show no less than 103 laws passed by the 
Assembly, many of which were of fundamental character. 
^See pages 71 a^id 73 of the Argument of Costa Rica of October 27, 1887. 
' See page 73, Argument of Costa Rica of October 27, 1887. 



44 

The Constituent Assembly, having full knowledge of the 
facts which had been published in tiie official organ, and which 
the Executive had, furthermore, reported to it minutelj, clothed 
the treaty with its approval. This approval, sanctioned likewise 
by the Executive, was also published as law of the Republic.^ 

The exceptional circumstances of political reconstruction, un- 
der which Nicaragua was, when the treaty of limits was made, 
satisfactorily explain why it was that the ratification of the 
treat}' was made by the Executive, as delegate of the Constitu- 
ent Power, and why the act of exchange followed, and did not 
precede, the approval by the Assembly. 

But the defense of Nicaragua, besides ignoring all these 
circumstances, and avoiding to enter into an}^ consideration 
thereof, has not hesitated to change their character l)y giving 
the name of "Constitutional Congress, or Assembly" to the 
Constituent body above mentioned. No law ever passed by 
that body fails to read in its heading, as can be seen in the 
statute-books, " The Constituent Assembly," &c. 

So great is the desire shown by the defense of Nicaragua 
of avoiding to give the Constituent Assembly which approved 
the treaty its proper name, that even in the literal translation 
of the decrees of that body,^ it has found it advisable to 
change that name into the one of " Constitutional Assembly," 
as if the English language had not the word " constituent," 
conveying the same idea as the Spanish word " constituyente," 
used in the Spanish text. 

When the Assembly gave its approval to the treaty, the latter 
was alread}^ a Nicaraguan law. But that approval, although 
not intended principally to perfect it, because it was already 
perfect, added to its strength. Its principal object was to re- 
lieve the Executive from whatever responsibility that might 
arise out of the exercise of the faculties delegated to it 
for the conclusion and ratification of the compact. 



* See page 55, Argument of Costa Rica of October 27, 1887. 
^ See Argument of Nicaragua of October, 1887, page 



46 

The approval, therefore, was nothing else than one of those 
corroborative acts which in the course of business often occur, 
and rest upon the well known and salutary principle quod 
ahundat non nocet. If that approval had never been given, 
the validity of the treaty would not have been affected in the 
least. 

The delegation of legislative powers, made in favor of the 
Executive, was not an act contrary to the public law of Nic- 
aragua. Even under conditions of regular constitutional 
regime such a thing is perfectly legitimate in that Republic. 
(Article 42, section 25, Nicaraguan Constitution of 1858). 

The public law of ISTicaragua, applicable to the case, and in 
force at the time of the conclusion of the treaty of limits, was 
not, as claimed in the argument to which I now reply, the Con- 
stitution of 1838 ; but, on the one hand. Chapter XYI of the 
Constitution of 1858, promulgated in advance by special de- 
cree of December 10, 185T, and, on the other hand, the decree 
of the Constituent Assembly of February 5, 1858, providing 
for both the form and the substance of the treaty which was 
to be adjusted. 1 

No allegation has ever been made that the said laws, whose 
existence not even has been mentioned in the argument of 
Nicaragua, were violated. And if the treaty was made, as it 
was, in strict compliance with their provisions, nothing else \s 
required to cause Nicaragua to respect it as one of her laws, 
as she did from 1858 to 1872, through her Legislative Con- 
gresses, her Executive Cabinets, and her officials of all kinds. 

What was done by the President of Nicaragua, Don Tomas 
Martinez, within the legality of the circumstances, and by 
virtue of the faculties delegated to him by the Constituent 
Assembly, was entirely constitutional and lawful, and binding 
upon the nation. 

Vattel says : 

" If the nation has transferred the plenitude of sovereignty 



'See page 73, Argument of Costa Rica of October 37th, 1887. 



46 

to its niler, if it has trusted to him the care and vested in him 
the right, without reserve, of treating and contracting witli the 
other States, it is deemed that it has vested it with all the 
powers necessar}^ to render his contracts valid. The Prince (or 
the ruler) is then the organ of the nation ; what he does is 
reputed to be done hy it ; and although he is not tiie owner 
of the public property he can alienate it validly."^ 

And that great luminary of the American law. Chancellor 
Kent, in discussing this subject, expresses himself as follows: 

"If a nation has conferi-ed upon its Executive Department, 
without reserve, the riglit of treating and contracting with 
other States, it is considered as having vested it with all the 
power necessary to make a valid treaty." ^ 

And if the circumstance that the formalities of Article 194 
of the Constitution of 1838 were not oljserved should ever 
produce as its result the nullification, of the treaty, the in- 
evitable conclusion to be reached therefrom would be that the 
Nicaraguan Constitution of August 19, 1858, is also void. 
And the reason is because neither the duumvirate which con- 
voked the Assembly, nor the Assembly itself, nor any act 
done by the one, or the other, did exactly fall under the strict 
legality of the Constitution of 1838. 

Out of the many fundamental laws which the regime afore- 
said nullified, one of paramount importance can be cited. This 
is the same Article 194 of the Constitution of 1838, which the 
defense of Nicaragua invokes in support of her claim that the 
treaty of limits is null. 

Art. 196 said as follows: 

"Art. 196. The present Constitution shall not be revised 
in its totality until after four years have elapsed, and then, 
v-pon the proper declaration according to the rules of Article 
194, that the revision should take place, a Constituent A sseni- 
hly shall be convoked, the members of which shall have special 
and sufficient powers from their constituents." 



' § 262, Chapter xxi, Book I. « I Kent, 163. 



47 

But the Constituent Assembly was convoked, and its meet- 
ings were held, without the formalities of Art. 194 of the Con- 
stitution having been observed at all, either previously or subse- 
quently. If the treaty of limits is null, owing to the non- 
compliance with that law, the Constitution of 1858, which 
was framed and promulgated without taking it into considera- 
tion, and has the same defect, is also null. Such conclusion 
would be absurd ; but its logical character shows that the Con- 
stituent Assembly of 1858 was not bound at all to obey the 
provisions of the Constitution of 1838, but had authority to 
act with utmost freedom, so as to obtain the high purposes 
which the dictatorial duumvirate had called it to accomplish. 

In the presence of this doctrine, and of the facts and con- 
siderations already set forth, there is not tjie slightest founda- 
tion for the statement that the treaty of 1858 lacks validity 
because it was made in violation of the fundamental laws of 
Nicaragua. 



Chapter III, 

DEMARCATION OF THE TEKKITORY OF NICARAGUA ACCORDING TO HER FIRST 
CONSTITUTION PROMULGATED APRIL 8, 182C— NICOYA. 

The present Republic of Nicaragua is nothing else than the 
old State of the same name organized on the 8th of April, 
1826, as one of the members of the Central American Re- 
public. 

Chapter I of her Constitution, promulgated at the date 
aforesaid, clearly defines the State and the territory thereof 
in the following language : 

"Aeticlk 1st. The State shall retain the name of State of 
Nicaragua, and it shall consist of all the inhabitants thereof, 
and form a part of the federation of Central America." 

"Article 2d. The territory of the State comprises the Dis- 
tricts of Nicaragua, Granada, Managua, Masaya, Matagalpa, 
Segovia, Leon, Subtiaba and El Realejo. 

" Its limits are : on the east, the Sea of the Antilles ; on 
the north, the State of Honduras; on the west, the Gulf of 
Conchagua ; on the soutli, the Pacific; Ocean, and on the south- 
east the free State of Costa Rica." 

"Article 3d. The above-named territory shall be divided 
into Departments, the number and limits of which shall be 
fixed by a special law." 

The districts which, at the time of the foundation of the 
State of Nicaragua, formed it, according to its first Constitu- 
tion, were Nicaragua, Granada, Managua, Masaya, Matagalpa, 
Segovia, Leon, Subtiaba, El Realejo, and none else. 

The District of Nicoya which, before the independence, had 
been at different times alternatively attached, sometimes to 



' Recopilacion de Im leyes decretos y acuerdos ejecuHvos de la RepiMica de 
Nicarogna en Ceritro America, formadapor el Doctor y Maestro Licenciado Don 
Jems de la Rocha, dc, &c. Managua. Imprenta del Gobierno 1867, page 13. 



49 

Nicaragua, sometimes to Costa Rica, and which in the last 
years of the Spanish rnle was united to Costa Rica for some 
purposes and for other purposes to Nicaragua, but which gen- 
erally enjoyed a certain degree of independence as a Mayoralty 
{Corregiviiento), directly depending upon tlie crown ; the Dis- 
trict of Nicoya, which by the sovereign will of its inhabi- 
tants had brolcen, two years before the foundation of the 
State of Nicaragua, the partial bonds which connected it with 
that State, and had incorporated itself, with the sanction of 
the Federal Congress of Central America, into the bordei'ing 
State of Costa Rica; that district, I say, was not comprised by 
the first Constitution of Nicaragua in the number of those 
which formed that State. 

So it appears from the plain language of Article 2nd of the 
organic law of ISicaragua of 1826, which necessarily was the 
basis upon wliich the Constitutions of 1838, 1854, 1858, and all 
others subsequent have been founded. 

The exclusion of Nicoya was not only explicit, but uncon- 
ditional, and without reserve. The Constituent legislators of 
Nicaragua had before their eyes the accomplished fact, sanc- 
tioned by the Federal power, and they respected and recognized 
it in Article 1st of the C<»nstitution. 

This Article is by itself sutScient to leave beyond a doubt 
that at the time of the organization of the State of Nicara- 
gua, Nicoj'a did not form a portion of her territory. And 
the truth of this assertion is confirmed, among many other 
reasons, b}^ the resolution of May 12, 1830, ^ passed by the 
Legislative Assembly of Nicaragua, whicli reads as follows : 

" Upon considei'ation of the motion made by one of the 
Deputies asking that the District of Nicoya, which aggre- 
gated ITSELF TO THE State OF CosTA RiCA bocauso of the last 
political convulsions, should be i-estored to Nicaragua, the leg 
islative body was pleased to resolve : That, whereas, the cause 



' Recopifacion de las leyes decretos y aeuerdos ejecuiiws de la Republica de 
Nicaragua, &e. , por el Doctor Don Jesus de la Rocha, page 66. 
4 



50 

whic^h brought ahont tliat result lias ceased to exist, the Ex- 
ecutive slioald urge the Federal Congress to restore the said 
District to the condition in which it m^as before ; and for 
tins purpose the said Executive is vested with all the autliority 
that may be necessary." 

The Nicaraguan Executive, in carrying out the resolution 
above mentioned, expressed itself in still more precise and 
conclusive language : 

" Let this resolution be complied with," said the Executive, 
" let it be transmitted to the Supreme Federal Government, 
and, in doing so, let the Executive of this State explain, that 
the reincorporation of the District of Nicoya into the State 
of Ni(-aragua is advisable and necessary ; firsts because the cir- 
cumstances which gave rise to its separation from ISicara- 
GUA AND ITS ANNEXATION TO CosTA HicA liave ccascd to exist ; 
second, because the said reincorporation contributes to the 
re-establishment of peace, and to the complete reorganization 
of the State ; * * * fifth, because Nicoya is indebted to 
the State of Nicaragua for tithes and other taxes, and the 
payment of that debt is obstructed hy the aggregation of 

THAT district TO CoSTA KlCA." 

" Let these considerations be urged upon the Supreme Fed- 
eral Executive, in order that it may be pleased to submit to 
Congress, witii favorable recommendation, if so deemed ad- 
visable, the petition of Nicaragua for the reincorporation 

OF NiCOTA INTO HER TERRITORY." 

The foregoing documents show that in 1830, more than four 
3^ears after the organization of the State of Nicaragua, the 
latter was asking the Federal Congress, not through demands 
or protests, as now alleged, but by humble prayers, for the re- 
incorporation of Nicoya, which was then united to Costa Rica. 
But the Central American Congress did not deem it advisable 
to accede to her petition. 

That was exactly the state of things when the Constitution 
of Nicaragua of November 12, 1838, was promulgated. 

The desired reincorporation of Nicoya had not taken place ; 



51 

and evidently the new Constitution could not declare that the 
sovereignty of Nicaragua extended in the southeast, bordering 
upon Costa liica, to a territory much more extensive than that 
on which it had been established and organized in 1828. 

Chapter I of the Constitution of 1838 defines the State and 
its Territory as follows : 

"Article 1st. The State shall retain the name of State of 
Nicaragua ; it consists of all its inliabitantS; and it shall be- 
long, by means of a compact, to tlie Federation of Central 
America." 

" Aetiole 2nd. The territory of the State is the same which 
was before comprised in the l^rovince of Nicaragua; its limits 
are : on the east and northeast, the State of Honduras ; on the 
west and south, the Pacific Ocean ; and on the southeast, the 
State of Costa Rica. The boundaries with the bordering States 
shall be marked out by a law which shall be made a part of 
the Constitution." 

Article 1st plainly establishes the identity of the State, so that 
the one organized in 1838 and the one constituted in 1826 were 
one and the same, both having the same territory and both bor- 
dering on the southeast with the free State of Costa Rica. That 
identity was not destroyed by the insertion in Article 2nd of 
the phrase, " Province of Nicaragua," betrause in the ancient 
documents Nicoya and Nicaragua are often mentioned as dif- 
ferent provinces, independent of each other ; and therefore the 
expression, "Province of Nicaragua," does not necessarily im- 
ply that the District of Nicoya was included.^ 

In the new Constitution, the districts which formed the State 
were not mentioned. But this omission was cured by the de- 
cree of December 2d of the same year, 1838, ^ issued by the 
same Constituent Assembly, dividing the territory of the State 
into four departments, namely, east, west, north, and south. 



' See the Report of Bishop Morrell, 1752, pages 24 and 25 of the Argument 
of Costa Rica. 
" RecopUacion de leyes, cfic, por el Doctor de la Rocha, p. 401. 



52 

Article 15th of the said decree reads as follows: 
" The Southern Department shall comprise no more than 
ONJS District, named the Rivas Disprict, until the question be- 
tween THIS Government and that of Costa Rica about the 

REINCORPORATION OF THE DISTRICT OF GuANACASTE IS SETTLED." 

The Constituent Legislature of Nicaragna of 1838 declared 
therefore, in the most solemn possible manner, tliat the South- 
ern Department of the State had only one District (Rivas), 
and that this had to l)e so until the question pending with 
Costa Rica should be settled and the District of Guana- 
caste SHOULD be reincorporated INTO ITlCARAGUA. 

To reincorporate meabs in Spanish, according to the Dic- 
tionary of the language:^ 

"To incorporate again, to aggregate, or unite, to a political 
or moral body something which had been separated from it." 

If, according to the Decree of December 21, 1838, issued 
by the Constituent Legislator, the District of Guanacaste 
could not be counted among the districts of the southern De- 
partment until it was reincorporated into Nicaragua, there is 
no doubt that the Constitution of 1838 did not declare, nor 
could it do so, that Guanacaste was an integral part of the 
Nicaraguan territory. The reincorporation may have been 
strongly desired ; but it was not accomplished. 

The truth is, indeed, that the question pending between 
Costa Rica and Nicaragua upon this subject did not reach a 
settlement until the treaty of 1858 was made; and by it Costa 
Rica ceded to Nicaragua not only a portion of Guanacaste, 
but also a portion of the Costa Rican territory which had 
never belonged to the ancient District of Nicoya. Those 
ceded territories became Nicaraguan on and after the date of 



' Diccionariodela lengua GaHtellanapoi' la Academia espaflola. Madrid, 1884. 
ImpreutadeDoa Gregorio Hernandez. 

The same definition is given by Webster (A.n American Dictionary of the 
English Language, 1881), by Worcester (A Dictionary of tlie English Lan- 
guage, Boston, 1800), by Lirousse (Graad Dlctionnaire Uaiversel du XIX 
siecle, Paris, 1875) and by Calvo (Dlctionnaire de Droit International Pub- 
lic L't Prive, Paris, 1885). 



53 

the treaty, but the rest of the Costa Rican territory, Guana- 
caste included, remained as foreign to Nicaragua as it had 
been prior to the foundation of the two States. 

After the Nicaraguan Constitution of 1826 eliminated, un- 
conditionally and without reserve, from the Nicaraguan terri- 
tory the District of Nicoya, and after the bond which formerly 
had united it to Nicaragua was thereby severed, all declara- 
tions made in subsequent Constitutions, no matter how express, 
in regard to sovereignty over Nicoya, if ever made, which I ^ 
deny upon the evidence above given, can have no other char- 
acter than that of mere claims or pretensions, as far distant 
from truth and perfect right, as simple thoughts or wishes 
are from actual reality. 

As the fortune of a merchant is not increased because he 
records in his books future and eventual profits, likewise the 
dominions of a sovereign are not enlarged because he writes 
on a Constitution the names of provinces not actually subject 

to his rule. 

And what cannot be obtained by means of express and 
known declarations, which may, in time, be refuted and blotted 
out, much less can be obtained by mystic phrases of hidden 
meaning, written a long time ago, when no one dreamt that 
such a construction could be ever placed on them. 

To suppose under this singular course of reasoning, that 
Nicoya was an integral part of Nicaragua is to ignore the fact 
that, during more than half a century after the Independence 
and organization of the Central American States, that Dis- 
trict, actually and legally was separated from Nicaragua and 
incorporated into Costa Rica, and that, during the whole of 
that period, it kept so separated, and formed a part of one of 
the five provinces of Costa Rica, with whom it has identified 
itself absolutely in interests, customs, and institutions, to such 
an extent that citizens of Nicoya have exercised the supreme 
power, the command of the Army, the Presidency of the Na- 
tional Congress, and tilled the positions of Secretary of State, 
Diplomatic Ministers, Justices of the Supreme Court, &c., &c. 



64: 

In the face of these facts the pretension ceases to be absurd, 
and becomes one which, in reality, can l>e impeached as lack- 
ing seriousness. 

Nicara,i3"aa reasons about Guanacaste, as if she were dealing 
with things and not with persons ; and forgets that the people 
of tliat Department, in the exercise of an imprescriptible right, 
decided to separate, and actually separated, themselves from 
the Niearagnan nation, even before said nation was organized 
as a free State, that the segregation was sanctioned by the 
common sovereign, which was the Federal Central American 
power, and that to complete the transaction Nicaragua herself 
recognized, accepted, and proclaimed it solemnly in its first 
Constitution. Neither the Constitution of 1838 nor that of 
1854, nor any other ever promulgated in Nicaragua, did de- 
clare at any time a square inch of territory beyond the limit 
assigned to the State by the Constitution of 1826 to be Nic- 
araguan domain. Nor could any Constitution have done so 
exci pt in case that the territorial acquisition would have been 
made after 1826, which never happened except under the treaty 
of 1858, which gave Nicaragua a portion of Guanacaste. 

There is not, therefore, as far as Guanacaste is concerned, 
the slightest conflict between the treaty of 1858 and the Con- 
stitution of Nicaragua; and to maintain the contrary is com- 
pletely to lose sight of the public law of that country and 
of the rudiments of its history, or of the Constitution of 
April 8, 1826, which was the first one ever promulgated in 
Nicaragua, and under which she presented herself as a free 
Central American State in the community of nations. 

Better informed than the public men of Nicaragua seems to 
have been the Minister of the United States in that country, 
Mr. Charles N. Riotte, who, in his despatch to the Secretary 
of State, Mr. Fish, dated at Managua on June 20, 1872, says 
the following : 

" It is a matter of history that since 1824, without inter- 
ruption, tlie Province of Guanacaste formed an integral part 
of the Republic of Costa Rica. Nothing has more embittered 



56 



the feeling in Costa Rica than this eternal harping for the 'lost 
brethren ' by the Nicaraguans, keeping up in the minds of the 
inhabitants of that Province an insecurity and uneasiness, the 
principal cause of its miserable condition. It is really too bad 
that these people, barely able to exercise its authority on one- 
third of its undisputed territory, and incapable of making it 
felt over two-thirds thereof, should run riot after a distant, 
wretched province, separated from the bulk of the Republic 
by high mountain ranges, inaccessible for six months in the 
year, and heedlessly provoke the enmity of a comparatively 
powerful neighbor,"^ 

And as the District of Nicoya or Guanacaste was not, accord- 
ing to the declarations of the Nicaraguan Constitutions of 1826 
and 1838, an integral part of the State of Nicaragua, as has 
been proved above, it is a grave error to maintain that the 
treaty of 1858 amended the Constitution of Nicaragua, and 
that it has no value because the amendment made by it was 
not in accordance with the forms and solemnities prescribed 
for such cases by the Constitution of that State. 

^ Papers relating to tke Foreign Relations of the United States in 1873, 
page 738. 



Chapter TV. 

DEMARCATION OF THE TERRITORY OF NICARAGUA ACCORDING TO ITS FIRST 
CONSTITUTION— SOUTHERN BANK OF THE SAN JUAN RIVER. 

Besides the claim that Iier sovereignty extends according to 
her Constitution of 1838 to tlie territory of Guanacaste, Nic- 
aragua set forth that she is entitled under the same Constitu- 
tion to all the land adjoining the San Juan river down to the 
mouth of the Colorado river. 

It is easy to show that that pretension is groundless. 

If the text of the Constitution of Nicaragua of 1826, which 
has been copied in the preceding chapter is examined, it will 
be found that not a word exists in that instrument in support 
of the idea that the southern bank of the San Juan river was 
Nicaraguan territory, but, on the contrary, it will appear that 
the Constitution declares the territory of the State to border 
on that side upon the free State of Costa Rica. 

This State had organized itself on January 21, 1825, under 
a constitution, which was communicated to the Federal Pow- 
ers, in which it is said that the Costa Rican territory on the 
side of the Northern Sea ended at the mouth of the San Juan 
river. Therefore the Constitution of Nicaragua, which was 
subsequent, far from supporting the idea now set forth by her 
Government, rather establishes the truth of the contrary as- 
sertion, because it was in the power of Nicaragua to contradict 
the declaration made by the Costa Rican organic law, and she 
not only failed to do so, but fixed as a limit of Nicaragua the 
same one which tiie free State of Costa Rica, organized a little 
more than one year before, had designated. 

The state of things in Nicaragua in 1838 being the same 
as in 1826, the Constitution promulgated on the former date 
could not enlarge the territory of the State and carry the 
frontier beyond the San J uan river. 



57 

But even supposing that such a thing happened, which 
never did, such a declaration, in conflict with the first Costa 
Kican Constitution which had been accepted and recognized, 
never could prevail against it ; and the result would be that tlie 
Nicaragnan declaration was of no more value than a simple 
claim or pretension, made still less mei-itorious by the fact 
that Costa Rica found herself in actual and immemorial pos- 
session of the territory, and Nicaragua never possessed it, nor 
exercised over it any act of domain. 

In the first part of this reply the possession of Costa Rica 
of the southern bank of the San Juan river, before the Inde- 
pendence and since, up to the date of the treaty, in which her 
rio;hts of borderinur nation were somewhat restricted, has been 
proved. 

All the leorislative collections of Nicaragua since the 10th 
of April, 1825, in which her first Constituent Congress met, 
can be perused, and no act will be found wliich supports or 
authorizes the claim that she exercised sovereign rights over 
the zone above mentioned. 

Political constitutions, on the other hand, are not the places 
where questions of limits between the States are to be defined. 
Otherwise such questions would never be settled without a 
general upsetting of the State being caused by the variation 
of its organic law. : 

Almost every country, especially in America, has had ques- 
tions of territorial limits with its neighbors, and they have 
been settled by public treaties, which had never been given 
the character of constitutional amendments. And this being 
the case, all the said treaties, without exception, could be held 
void, as made in violation of the respective national Constitu- 
tions. 

Tills irremedial nullity would be incurred, among many 
others, by the treaty by which Louisiana was ceded to the 
United States; hy the treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo, by which 
Mexico renounced her sovereignty over the teriitories of Up- 
per California, Colorado, Nevada, and New Mexico ; by the 



68 

treaty between Spain and France of 1856, which settled a 
questiun of limits standing for centuries ; by the treaty be- 
tween France and Italy, by which Savoy and Nice were an- 
nexed to France, to the detriment of Italy ; by the treaty of 
1866, by which Chili ceded to Bolivia a portion of the Ata- 
cama Desert ; by the treaty of 1876, by which the Argentine 
Republic ceded a portion of territory to that of Paraguay ; 
by the treaty of 1883, by which the annexation of Chiapas 
and Soconusco to Mexico was finally recognized, &c., &c. 

No one of these treaties has ever been considered as an 
amendment to the Constitutions of the countries which entered 
into them. And if the course of reasoning of Nicaragua is 
accepted, the conclusion cannot be avoided that they all are in- 
valid. A doctrine which leads to such conclusions needs not 
to be refuted. To show its logical consequences is sufficient 
to reject it. 



Chapter Y . 

the convention of limits of 1858 is an inteknational treaty like 
any other, and not an unfinished amendment to the nicara&uan 
constitution. 

One of the erroneous ideas on which the argument of Nic- 
aragua rests, consists in considering the compact of 1858, not 
as a public international convention like any other, but as an 
amendment to, or a reform of, the Nicaraguan Constitution. 

It has been already shown, in Chapters III and lY, how 
groundless this assertion is in matter of fact, since the Con- 
stitutions of Nicaragua could not comprise, nor did they com- 
prise under lier sovereignty, the territory of Nicoya, now 
Province of Guanacaste, and much less the lands adjoining the 
San Juan river on its southern bank. 

Now I shall proceed to show the incorrectness of the same 
idea from another standpoint. 

By means of conjectures and interpretations, more or less 
strained, Nicaragua tries to persuade that the treaty of limits 
modified or amended Article 2d of the Constitution of 1838. 
But this pretension has been beforehand rejected and refuted 
by Nicaragua herself, through the organ of her Constituent 
Assembly of 1858, which by positive and express action, ad- 
mitting of no contradiction, declared and proclaimed the con- 
trary. 

If, as it is claimed, the treaty of limits would have in- 
volved or implied, in the mind of the Constituent Legislator 
of Nicaragua, a constitutional reform or amendment, no doubt 
can be entertained, that for concluding and perfecting it the 
Constituent Assembly would have proceeded in the same way, 
as it did, for the special constitutional amendments which it de- 
creed, in all of which it took pains to express by a final article 
the constituent or organic character of its action. 

If this was not done, if the Constituent Assembly did not 



60 

subject tlie treaty to the rules of proceedings and to the forms 
which correspond to a constitutional amendment, if no one 
said, or thought, at that time, that the treaty implied such an 
amendment, it is plain, as well as indisputable, that the As- 
sembly did not give the ti-eaty a different character tiian that 
whifh lielongs to any other pul)lic treaties whatsoever ; and this 
opinion of the Asseml)ly, certainly one in conformity with 
truth and principle, this authentic interpretation made by the 
Nicaraguan Constituent Legislator himself, is the most eloquent 
negative answer that can be given to the allegations of the 
latter Governments of Nicaragua which attempt to attribute to 
the treaty of liniits a character which does not belong to it. 

If tlic Constituent Assembly of 1858 would have had in its 
mind that when approving the treaty it was merely approving 
it for the first time, subject to the action of a subsequent leg- 
islature, which might sanction or reject it, it would not have 
eliminated from the law of territorial division of the Republic 
which it enacted on August 30, 1858, i the reservation clause 
in regard to Guanacaste, which the Constituent Assembly of 
1838 iiad written in its own law of territorial division of De- 
cember 21st of tliaL year. 2 It is plain that if such had been 
the case the Constituent Assembly would have postponed the 
elimination until the moment in which the subsequent legisla- 
ture should give its approval. 

But no such thing happened, and the new territorial divi- 
sion was made by law as follows : 

"Akticle 1 , The Republic is divided for electoral purposes 
into seven departments, to wit: Chinandega, Leon, Nueva Se- 
govia, Matagalpa, Chontales, Rivas, and Granada." 

******* 

"Article 8. The Disti-ict of Rivas (bordering with Guana- 
caste) consists of the city of this name, the town of San Jorge, 



'See Gacetii de Nicaragua, No. 39, Nov. 20, 1856. 

''Recopiladon dc las leyes &c. de JVicaragua, por el Dr. La Rocba, Managua, 
1867, page 401. 



61 

Buenos Ayres, Potosi, Ohrage, Ometepe, Moyagalpa, Pineda, 
La Yirgen, and Tortugal." 

No reservation of any kind is made here in regard to Gna- 
nacaste or Nicoya, because the question whicli had been pend- 
ing between the two Republics about that territory was then 
finally settled by the treaty of limits. 

The Constituent Assembly of 1858 gave to the treaty its 
true character, and all the Executives and all the Legishitures 
subsequent to that year, up to 1871, always agreed in regard 
to this point. Nothing will be found, whether in the statute 
books of Nicaragua, nor in the action of her administration, nor 
in the decrees of the Nicaraguan courts from 1858 to 1871, 
which involves the idea that the treatj^ of limits was an i-nper- 
fect and unfinished amendment to the Constitution of the 
country; while, on the conti-ary, the proofs are abundant that 
the said treaty was always recognized and considered, not as 
something incomplete and still pending, but as a convention 
finally concluded and sanctioned. 

The reasons now alleged to give to the convention of limits 
of 1858 no more character than that of a projected constitu- 
tional reform never consummated, must be exceedingly weak 
when they never occurred to the mind of any of the Supreme 
Powers of Nicaragua from 1858 to 1871. They must be 
very weak, indeed, when they were never used before the 
downfall of the Ayon-Chevalier contract, or under the event- 
ful circumstances of 1864, when Nicaragua suspended her re- 
lations with Costa Rica, because of the hospitality which, ac- 
cording to her laws, she could not refuse, and which she ex- 
tended to the ex-Pr^sident of Salvador, General Don Gerardo 
Barrios. 



Chapter VI. 

EVEN GRANTING THAT THE TBEATY OF 1858 INVOLVED A CESSION OF TERBI- 
TORY, THIS CESSION COULD BE MADE BY ONLY ONE LEGISLATURE ACCOBD- • 
ING TO THE CONSTITUTION OF 1838. 

If the Constitutions of Nicaragua prior to 1858 are con- 
sulted nothing will be found in them clearly and directly ex- 
plaining which are the authorities or officers of the State, in 
whom the power of validly contracting in the name of the 
nation is vested. For this reason it is necessary for us to turn 
to the general principles which in countries under democratic 
institutions vest that power jointly in the Chief Magistrate 
of the State and the national representation. 

But the national representation and the supreme Chief 
Magistrate of Nicaragua were precisely the ones who made 
the treat}' of 1858 ; and, therefore, the conclusion cannot be 
avoided that the treaty is valid and perfect under the most 
strict principles of international law. 

Perhaps the very circumstance that the Constitution of 1838 
was so silent in regard to the treaty-making power induced the 
Constituent Assembly to enact special laws for the conclusion, 
ratification, and exchange of the treaty of limits of 1858. 
That treaty was not, as it is supposed, the work of the Ex- 
ecutive, simply approved but not sanctioned by the Constituent 
Assembly, but a legislative act, perfected and consummated, 'in 
which the Executive acted not only in its capacity as such, but 
as delegate of the Constituent Assembly, under instructions 
and upon bases furnished by the said Assembly, to which it 
strictly adhered. 

It is claimed in the argument of Nicaragua that the treaty of 
1858 involved a cession or alienation of the national territory, 
and that, under this circumstance, which dismembered the 
State, the treaty could have no value without the requisites 
prescribed for constitutional amendments being first complied 
with. 



63 

There is error in believing that the treaty had the effect of 
transferring to Costa Hica a portion of the territory of Nicara- 
gua. This has ab'eady been proved. Bat, even supposing that 
such a transfer Avas made, the treaty would, nevertheless, be 
valid, because the Nicaraguan Legislative Power, according to 
Article 109 of the Constitution of 1838, had authority to 
alienate the national territory without needing for that purpose 
to amend the Constitution. And if a simple, ordinary legisla- 
ture had that power, the Constituent Assembly of 1858, which 
represented the nation without any of the limitations of an ordi- 
nary Congress, must also have had it with still more reason. 

See what the above-said Article 109 of the Constitution of 
1838 says in this respect : 

"It belongs to the legislative power of the State — 

" 1st. To enact, interpret, and abrogate the laws when neces- 
sary. 

"9th. To resolve what may be advisable about the adminis- 
tration, preservation, and alienation of all property of the 
State." 

The defense of Costa Rica tries to disguise as much as it 
can the constituent character of the Assembly of 1858 which 
approved the treaty ; but, even supposing that it had been a 
mere ordinary Congress, or Legislature, bound to act necessarily 
within the limits of the Constitution of 1838, and also that the 
treaty involved an alienation of State property, that ordinary 
Congress had, however, full power to give its approval to the 
treaty without transgressing the Constitutional rules. 

It is well, therefore, for Yattel to say that the Chief of the 
State cannot alienate its territory, and that the nation itself 
must do it. This principle was precisely the one which was 
applied to the present case. The nation itself, by means of a 
Constituent Assembly, approved the treaty, and nothing else 
can be demanded. 



Chapter VIL 

WHETHER THE TEEATV OF 1858 WAS EXCHANGED BEFORE IT WAS RATIFIED. 

The title of this chapter indicates the assertion of one of the 
throe reasons ojiven by the representative of Nicara;^aa in sup- 
port of the chiiin that the treaty of 1858 is null and void. 

It is alleged that, under Article XII of that instrument, it 
had to be ratitiod, and the ratitications exchanged within forty 
days after its conclusion ; that the exchange was made on April 
26th of the same year by the Presidents of Costa Rica and 
Nicaragua, before the treaty was approved l)y the Assembly ; 
that the treaty was approved, not ratified, on June 4 subse- 
quent, when thirty-eight days had already elapsed since the 
date of the exchange ; and, lastly, that the day on which the 
Assembly gave its approval, the period of 40 days fixed by the 
treaty for the exchange had expired. 

This new argument of Nicaragua is as weak and untenable 
as all others set fortli by her. 

It would be necessary that neither the Presidents of Costa 
Rica and Nicaragua, nor their respective Cabinets, nor the 
Chambers of either Republic, nor, in one word, any person 
whatsoevei" in the two countries, knew at the time of the cele- 
bration of the treaty the meaning of the word ratification used 
therein, nor the importance and transcendency of the act ex- 
pressed by it, nor its indispensable priority to the exchange, to 
supyjose that, notwithstanding the express provision of the 
treaty, they decided to make the exchange without a previous 
ratification, and without being full}' persuaded that the form 
in which the said ratification had been imparted was sufficient 
and valid. 

It can never be admitted that serious men could have com 
promised in such an inconsiderate way the acts of two Gov- 
ernments, and the transcendency of a compact of such impor- 



65 

tance as the one fixing the limits between the two countries, 
purporting to be a settlement of protracted questions, and a 
happy termination of an unpleasant state of things, which, con- 
sequently, was received by the people of both countries with 
signs of jubilation, more so, perhaps, by Nicaragua herself, 
who went so far as to confer the rank of a general in her 
army on the Salvadorian mediator. 

According to the decree, to be found elsewhere in this reply? 
the Constituent Assembly of Nicaragua, in use of the full 
power vested in it, delegated to the Chief Magistrate of the 
nation for the sake of brevity, and owing to the importance of 
the matter, the faculty to ratify the treaty, provided that it was 
in accordance with the bases that had been communicated to 
him for his guidance. 

In this there was no irregularity of any kind, because the 
people themselves, by means of their representatives entrusted 
with framing the organic law, had a perfect right to delegate 
their faculties to whomsoever they pleased ; and there was no 
harm either, whatever the gravity of the subject might have 
been, because, as long as the act was performed in strict accord- 
ance with the instructions and bases given by the Assembly, 
the Assembly itself was in reality the party which concluded 
the treaty, and the ratification became unnecessary, or, better 
to say, it was given beforehand. 

That the treaty of limits of 1858 did not go a single point 
beyond the instructions given by the Assembly is clearly 
proved by the fact of the approval which that body imparted 
to it, and furthermore by the unanimous and warm acceptance 
which it received by the public press of Nicaragua and by the 
whole nation, as well as by the immediate execution of its 
provisions and its enforcement during a long period of time. 

The very fact of the approval of the treaty by the Assembly, 
which is invoked as an argument in support of the alleged 
want of ratification, proves a posteriori that that body con- 
sidered both the treaty and the exchange, in the form in which 
they were made, and the time thereof, as perfectly valid acts ; 
5 



66 

because, otherwise, if the Assembly had thought that the requi- 
site of ratitieation was wanting, it either would have ratified it, 
if so deemed advisable, or would have withheld its sanction ex- 
pressly, whether on the ground that the treaty did not suit 
its ideas, or because the forty days agreed upon fory the ratifica- 
tion or exchange had elapsed. Therefore if the Assembly, 
with full knowledge of the manner in which the treaty was 
celebrated and of the way and date in which the exchange 
was made, and of the fact that the period agreed upon for the 
ratification had passed, approved the treaty, it is evident that 
it judged, as was the truth, that the treaty had been legally 
and in due time ratified by the President, in use of the special 
faculties which had been vested in him for that purpose. 

To think otherwise would be equivalent to saying that the 
most eminent men of Nicaragua, who formed the Constituent 
Assembly of 1858, were incapable of seeing such palpal^le de- 
fects as those which are now alleged, and that that incapacity 
was carried to the extreme, because it was exhibited in regard 
to acts of their own, just publicly accomplished. 

The very same words of President Martinez and the Assem- 
bly in regard to the treaty clearly show what their intention 
was, and what was the especial course which, according to the 
abnormal condition of the Republic and the peculiar character 
of the subject, they had intended to pursue. Those words also 
show that they had a clear insight into what they were doing. 
The President, contrary to the general custom, because the 
Executive, as a general rule, confines its action only to the 
approval of the treaties, ratified the one of 1858 ; and the 
Assembly, difierently, also, from the usual custom of those 
bodies which arc called to ratify the international Conven- 
tion, confined itself to approve the one herein referred to. 

The President ratified, because he had delegated authority 
to do so ; and the Assembly approved, because what is already 
ratified needs no further ratification. 

The treaty of 1858 was, therefore, ratified by the one who 
had full authority to do so, and the ratification, as well as the 



67 

exchange, took place within the stipulated time. With this 
the remark made by the representative of Nicaragua as to the 
want of exchange of the treaty, after its approval by the As- 
sembly, has been answered. 

This fact, which is correct, corroborates the efficiency which 
Costa Eica, as well as Nicaragua, gave, both at the time of the 
conclusion of the treaty, and during fourteen years of uninter- 
rupted compliance with it, to the ratification made by the Presi- 
dent and to the exchange which followed it. Costa Rica never 
thought of asking for any exchange of the treaty after the ap- 
proval by the Assembly, because none was to be made. The 
exchange had already been made within the period fixed by 
the treaty, and not only with all the required solemnity, but 
with luxury of forms, as I have explained elsewhere. 



Chapter VIII. 

WHETHER THE TREATY OF 1858 WAS RATHER IMPOSED UPON KICARA.GUA THAN 
ACCEPTED BY HER. 

In the preceding argument of Costa Rica, Chapter XI of the 
Second Part, the true history of the negotiations which culmi- 
nated in the convention of limits of April 15, 1858, was given 
with minute correctness, supported by documents. It would, 
therefore, be idle for Costa Rica to say here anything further 
in regard to tliat point, if she were not compelled to rectify 
certain assertions made in the Argument of Nicaragua, which 
are absolutely at variance with truth. 

The said Argument set forth affirmatively that Costa Rica, 
in flagrant violation of international law, without a previous 
declaration of war, and with the animus of taking possession 
by force of a portion of the Nicaraguan territory, which all 
her diplomatic efforts had not been able to secure, profiting by 
the state of prostration in which Nicaragua was at that time, 
invaded her territory and occupied the San Juan river, which 
gave occasion to the intervention of Salvador, and to the treaty 
of 1858 " imposed upon Nicaragua rather than accepted by 
her." 

It is a fact of indisputable notoriety that one and all of the 
propositions which I have just transcribed are in opposition to 
historical truth. 

Costa Rica and the other States of Central America, except 
Nicaragua, enjoj'ed in 1856 the benefits of peace ; but the 
civil struggles between Granadines and Leonese furnished oc- 
casion and reason for the war which Costa Rica, Guatemala, 
Honduras, and Salvador were compelled, in spite of tliem- 
selves, in union with a portion of the people of Nicaragua, to 
wage against General William Walker, the ursurper of the pub- 
lic power in the latter country. 



69 

•All the allied nations remained more or less prostrated on 
account of that war, and none certainly more so than Costa 
Kica and Nicaragua, which bore the greatest part of its bur- 
den. 

The differences concerning territorial limits were absolutely 
forgotten under those circumstances of common danger for 
all Central America. And if Costa Hica carried her forces 
to Nicaragua, as she certainly did, it was not as an invader or 
enemy, but as a friend and ally ; and if she took possession of 
Walker's steamers and with them ruled over the San Juan 
river and the Lake, she did so with the approval and consent 
of the Nicaragnan party which struggled for the independence 
of their country, and in pursuance of a treaty of alliance, of- 
fensive and defensive, with all the other States of Central 
America, solemnly promulgated and approved and applauded, 
not only by every good Nicaraguan and the whole Central 
American people, but by other nations whose safety had been 
indirectly threatened. 

The only protest which, under those circumstances, was 
raised against Costa Rica, was on the part of Walker and his 
followers. But he, in Nicaragua, was only an usurper, both 
hateful and tyrannical. 

The seizure of the steamers and the control of the river and 
the Lake is one of the greatest sources of pride and national 
glory for Costa Rica. That exploit was the severest blow ever 
inflicted upon the growing power of Walker, as he himself ac- 
knowledged in his history of the Nicara^uan war. The docu- 
ments and publications of that time all agree in considering 
those facts as decisive of the final victory. 

It is therefore scarcely conceivable that this being the case 
the name of flagrant violation of international law should be 
given to the most sigiial act of assistance and friendship which 
Nicaragua could receive under those circumstances. 

To co-oporate as an ally, to redeem a sister nation from the 
foreign yoke to which she had been subjected, and which she 
after a severe struggle had proved to be powerless to shake off, 



70 

is not to violate international law, but, on the contrary, fulfill 
perhaps excessively, the duty of reciprocal assistance which 
sister nations like those of Central America owe to each other. 

Costa Rica retained during the war the positions which 
she had gained by her effort, in order that they would not 
fall again into the hands of the enemy to the prejudice of 
all the allies. But Nicaragua, as soon as she saw the promi- 
nence which her neighbor had reached became jealous and difii- 
dent, and in the moment, which certainly was the least op- 
portune, took up the forgtoten question of limits. 

This action gave occasion to unpleasantness which might 
have led to war, if the prudence of Costa Rica had not avoided it. 

Finally, owing in great part to the efforts of Salvador, all 
the differences were compromised and adjusted by the treaty 
of 1858, which was initiated, negotiated, ratified, exchanged, 
promulgated, and enforced after Nicaragua was in full, quiet, 
and peaceful possession of her waters, her territory, her for- 
tresses, her ports, and her cities and towns, and when she was 
at the most perfect peace, cordiality, and harmony with Costa 
Rica. 

To say, therefore, that the treaty of 1858, rather than ac- 
cepted by Nicaragua, was imposed upon her by Costa Rica, is 
asserting a fact not only absolutely at variance with truth, 
but offensive to Nicaragua, who is supposed thereby to be 
capable of signing an unaccej)table treaty, for fear of incur- 
ring the anger of her neighbor. 

Such conclusions are reached when a cause is defended with 
arguments not resting upon truth. 



Chapter IX . 

WHETHER THE TREATY OF LIMITS IS NULL FOR WANT OF RATIFICATION BY 
THE GOVERNMENT OF SALVADOR. 

In Chapters X, XII, XIII, and XIV of the Second Part of 
the preceding Argument of Costa Rica, the questions arising 
out of the want of ratification of the treaty of 1858 by the 
Republic of Salvador were fully considered, and it was shown 
therein that that want of ratification does not affect in any 
w^ay or manner the validity of the compact as to the principal 
contracting parties. 

The reasons which the defense of Nicaragua alleges in the 
Argument to which I reply have been already amply refuted 
in the Argument of Costa Rica ; and, indeed, there is not a 
single passage in the Nicaraguan Argument which needs now 
to be answered. 

The whole reasoning of Nicaragua upon this subject can be 
summed up in the following propositions : 

A. — The guarantee of Salvador was a stipulation introduced 
into the treaty to the exclusive benefit of Nicaragua and against 
Costa Rica. 

But this proposition cannot be maintained in the presence 
of Article IX of the same treaty, which reads as follows : 

" Under no circumstances, and even in casq that the Repub- 
lics of Costa Rica and Nicaragua should unhappily find them- 
selves in a state of war, neither of them shall be allowed to 
commit any act of hostility against the other, whether in the 
port of San Juan del Norte or in the San Juan river or the 
Lake of Nicaragua." 

As it is seen, the stipulation is mutual, and introduced for 
the benefit of both countries, and equally restraining upon 
them — not by any means a right for one, and a charge upon 
the other, as Nicaragua pretends. 



72 

B. — The guarantee of Salvador was the principal considera- 
tion which induced Nicaragua to assent to the treaty. 

Should this be true, Nicaragua would not have shown quite 
as much anxiety as Costa Rica for settling the question of 
limits which, for more than thirty years, had kept the two 
countries in a constant state of uneasiness. Neither would she 
have shown so much interest in acquiring peacefully, and in a 
mannei- not subject to contradiction, the southern shore of the 
Great Lake, and a portion of the right bank of the San Juan 
river, as well as the portion of territory which the treaty gave 
her south of the Sapoa and La Flor rivers, — or in securing the 
perpetual alliance of Costa Rica for the defense of the San 
Juan river and the port of San Juan, and acquiring the 
eminent domain and sovereignty over the watei'S of the San 
Juan river, in which she only had, up to that time, the right 
of possession in common, — or in releasing herself from the pay- 
ment of the considerable amount of money which she owed to 
Costa Rica. Nothing of this would have happened if the 
treaty had been intended merely to secure for Nicaragua the 
important right of not being harassed by hostilities by her 
neighbor on the waters of the San Juan river and the other 
places designated. See, therefore, bow far from being correct 
is the proposition under consideration. 

C. — The treaty of limits was a tripartite convention, and 
cannot have either value or effect without the unanimous con- 
sent of all the parties who subscribed to it. 

The inexactness of this proposition is self evident, when it 
is considered, as has been superabundantly proved, that the 
Government of Salvador was not an essential party to the 
treaty of limits between Costa Rica and Nicaragua, but that 
it was primarily a friendly mediator and subsequently a sec- 
ondary party, as surety or guarantor, a character which could 
disappear without affecting in the least the principal olJigation. 

L). — If the consent of all the parties is wanting, and one of 
the stipulations of the treaty falls thereby, the whole treaty must 
also fall, because " any special advantage conceded by a party 



73 

under any one article of the compact is in consideration of all 
the advantages enjoj'^ed by the same party under that and all 
other articles of the treaty. 

To support this conclusion a passage of an opinion of Mr. 
Gushing, Attorney-General of the United States, has been 
quoted. 

If Nicaragua pretends by this argument that the guarantee 
in favor of the stipulation of Article X of the treaty offered 
by the Minister of Salvador in the name of his Government 
is one of those special advantages conceded to one party by 
the other in exchange and in compensation of all the other 
advantages that the granting party enjoys under the whole 
compact, the structure of her argument proves to be faulty. 

The guarantee spoken of was not a special advantage for 
Nicaragua, nor was it conceded by Costa Rica, but it was, as 
plainly expressed by the language of the Article, a mutual ad- 
vantage stipulated in favor of the two contracting nations 
without difference or preference of any kind between them, 
and in consideration of nothing else than a mere general Cen- 
tral American interest felt by a third party, which was the 
Government of Salvador. 

So that, even following the course of reasoning of the de- 
fense of Nicaragua in regard to this point, and even admitting, 
what cannot be admitted without doing extreme violence to 
the doctrine of contracts, that the promise or guarantee with- 
out sufficient consideration was not a simple nudus pactus^ 
having no more value than that of the paper upon which it 
was written, the result would always be that the said doctrine 
has no application in this case. 

If the party who " conceded," or offered to concede, that 
"advantage " liad been Costa Rica, the application of the doc- 
trine might take place, because, in that case, the advantage, 
whether special or not, conceded by her might be claimed to 
be in consideration of all the other advantages which the 
whole of the treaty secured for her. But, as the alleged " ad- 
vantage " is nothing which one of the parties offered to the 



74 

other, l)ut something that was offered to the two equally and 
at the same time by a third party, who acted as a mediator, it 
is phiiii that it could not form part of the consideration of the 
treaty. The advantage was not granted by Costa Kica, and, 
therefore, it cannot be understood to be a consideration for the 
" advantages " whicli the whole treaty stipulated in her favor. 

Tlie opponent has tried to dazzle the upright and impartial 
criterion of the Arbitrator by referring to a passage, both in- 
complete and inapplicable, of an opinion of Mr. Gushing. 

True it is that on October 14, 1853, that distinguished jurist 
was called upon by the Secretary of State of the United 
States, Mr. Marcy, to give his opinion upon a certain preten- 
sion of the Charge d'Affaires of Denmark in this country, to 
the eifect that certain seamen who had deserted a Danish ves- 
sel should be surrendered to him on the ground that the United 
States, by treaty with the Government of Sweden, had bound 
themselves to do so when the deserting seamen were Swedish, 
and that Denmark under the clause " of most favored nation," 
stipulated in the treaty celebrated with her, was entitled to 
enjoy the same advantage. 

Mr. Cushing maintained that if the grant made in favor of 
Sweden had been gratuitous, Denmark might have the right, 
under her own treaty, to share like benefits. But that, whereas 
the " advantage " conceded to Sweden was something inti- 
mately connected with all the other " advantages " granted 
by her, it was not possible to extend it to Denmark under 
the clause " of most favored nation," unless under circum- 
stances entirely identical and upon Denmark's giving the en- 
tirety of the compensation granted by Sweden. i 

It is, therefore, plain that the defense of Nicaragua, picking 
up detached phrases of a respectable text, distorts its meaning. 

And the proof thereof is that Mr. Cushing himself, in the 
same opinion and a few lines below the passage quoted by the 



' Opinions of the Attorneys-General of the United States, vol. vi, page 
148. 



75 

opponent, says that " neither party to a treaty can, of its mere 
will and pleasure, abrogate such agreement, except under 
agreed conditions ; " and that " the league, ligamen, can be 
rightfully dissolved only by the same mutuality of consent by 
which it was tied," which being brought and applied to the 
present case teaches Nicaragua that the treaty which she made 
with Costa Rica, giving away certain things and receiving 
others in exchange, cannot be rescinded, for the mere reason 
that such agreement, for some cause or other, does not now suit 
her convenience ; and that on the contrary she has to admit it as 
valid and efficient as she has willingly done for many years. 



Chapter X, 

WHETHER NIOABAQUA CAN REPUDIATE THE TREATY OF LIMITS FOR BEING 

PERNICIOUS. 

One of the arguments of the learned opponent in favor of 
tlie nullity of the treaty consists in the allegation that Nic- 
aragua \vas injured by it. 

" It is laid down by Vattel," says the Argument of Nic- 
aragua, " that a treaty pernicious to the State is null, and not 
at all obligatory, as no conductor of a nation has the power 
to enter into engagements to do such things as are capable 
of destroying the State, for whose safety the Government is 
entrusted to him ; " and in further proof of this assertion, 
the same argument refers to the precedent of the treaty of 
Madrid of 1526 between Emperor Charles V and the King 
of France, Francis I; and also the renunciation of Maria 
Theresa. From here it concludes that the treaty which fixed 
the territorial limits of the two nations twenty-nine years ago 
must be consigned to oblivion, and stricken from the Statute 
Books of Nicaragua. 

The first thing to be said in answer to this argument is that 
neither the quotation from Vattel is complete, nor is the case 
referi'ed to by that illustrious author in the passage quoted the 
same as the treaty of Nicaragua. In the same place, in which 
Vattel explains what, in his judgment, must be done with per- 
nicious treaties, that is in § 160 of Chapter XII, Book II, of 
his standard work on the " Law of Nations," he recommends 
the reader to turn his eyes to some other portion of his work, 
and consider what he himself had said in former paragraphs 
of the same Chapter and Book, and also in Chapter XXI of 
the preceding Book I. 

There Vattel says as follows : 

" A treaty is valid when there is no vice in the manner in 



77 

which it was conchided, and for this nothing else can le de- 
manded than a sufficient power in the contracting parties 
and their mutual consent sufficiently declared." ^ 

The same distinguished writer says in continuation as follows : 

" The hardship (lessio) cannot make a treaty invalid^ The 
one who enters into a contract must look well on what he does 
and weigh with care everything before giving his consent. 
He can do whatever he pleases with what is his ; he can waive 
his rights or give up his advantages, and the other party, 
although benefitted by his action, has no obligation to in- 
quire into the reasons which moved him to act, or to weigh 
the just value of his acts. If a treaty could he repudiated he- 
cause one of the parties to it deems itself wronged there would 
he nothing lasting in the contracts among nations." 

" The happiness and peace of the nations manifestly demand 
that their treaties should not depend upon a cause of nullity 
so vague and dangerous." ^ 

We are taught upon the authority of the same great writer 
that those treaties which settle by means of a compromise dif- 
ferences among nations, although necessarily implying losses and 
renunciations, sometimes of considerable importance, are not 
only valid but highly commendable. ^ 

" It is commonly laid down," says Bernard, " that neither 
the plea of ' duress,' nor that of lessio enormis (a degree of 
hardship that is so plain and gross that the sufferer cannot be 
supposed to have contemplated what he was undertaking) rec- 
ognized directly or circuitously, in one form or another, by 
municipal law, both ancient and modern, can be allowed to jus- 
tify the non-fulfilment of a treaty."'* 

But even in case that the treaty of limits which Nicaragua 
signed, ratified, and promulgated in 1858, subjected her to 
losses, and really did injury, is it not plain that such injury 



141, Chapter xii, Book ii. ' § 329, Chapter xviii, Book ii. 

158, Chapter ii, Book ii. ' Bernard on Diplomacy, 85. 

Dr. Wharton's Digest, Chapter vi, § 133, Vol. ii, p. 5. 



Y8 

cannot be other than that naturally involved in all compro- 
mises ? 

Such a commendable manner of putting an end to litigation, 
as a compromise is, implies by its own essence on the part of 
both contracting parties the sacrifice of some rights, no matter 
how well founded, and thus excludes at once all idea that it is 
possible to rescind it on account of hardship. 

If an injury of that kind is alleged by Nicaragua for the 
purpose of causing the treaty of 1858 to fall, with how much 
more reason could Costa Rica allege it ? She lost by the 
treaty tlie eminent domain on the San Juan river, and her condi- 
tion and rights as a riparian State for an extent equal to the 
third part of the course of the river and the whole of the 
southern part of the Lake ; and, furthermore, she lost a con- 
siderable zone of territory on the Papagallo Isthmus from the 
La Flor river to the centre of the Salinas Bay. 

The above stated doctrine, held by the laws of all civilized 
nations to be correct, is obvious ; and there is no writer on In- 
ternational Law who contradicts it. 



ChaptekXI. 

constant kecognition by nicaragua until 1872 of thk validity of the 

TREATY OF LIMITS. 

There is a point extensively treated in the Argument of 
Costa Eica, upon which not a word would be added in the 
present reply, if Nicaragua had not boasted in hev Argument 
of the firmness with which for many continuous years she has 
maintained the invalidity of the treaty of 1858. 

In contrast with the persistence with which it is true that 
Nicaragua has maintained, subsequent to 18T2, the above said 
idea, I shall present now some facts not set forth in my former 
Argument, which testify to the respect which that treaty re- 
ceived in Nicaragua prior to that year. 

The preliminary arrangement Yolio-Zelaya, signed in San 
Jose on July 13,. 1868, ^ shows that on that date the Govern- 
ment of Nicaragua recognized the force of the treaty of limits. 
Otherwise the said Government would not have tried to secure 
the acquiescence of the Government of Costa Rica for the im- 
provement of the San Juan river and of the Bay of San Juan 
del Norte which was then in project. 

Another fact is the following : 

The oflicial newspaper of Nicaragua, in commenting upon 
the speech of Licentiate Don Jesus Jimenez, President of 
Costa Rica, in the official reception of Senor Don Mariano 
Montealegre, Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipo- 
tentiary of Nicaragua, expressed itself in the following re- 
markable language : 

" But Nicavagua and Costa Rica find themselves in condi- 
tion on account of their topographic position, if it is so desired, 
to strengthen still more these bonds, and work with greater 

^ See Document No. 53. 



80 

efort in uniting their interests for the sake of human pro- 
gress T 

" The San Juan river, while dividing the two States terri- 
torially, mixes in such a way in its bountiful toaters the com- 
mercial interests ofhoth 7iations, as not to allow either one to 
he indiffereid to anything happening on itP 

This was written on May 22, 1869, and it shows that at that 
date it was still in the mind of Nicaragaa that the stipulations 
of the treaty of 1858 were binding upon her. 

A few days afterwards civil war came again to afflict that 
country. Among the instructions which, with supreme ap- 
proval, were given to the Military Inspector of the Lake and 
San Juan river, the following appears : 

" The line of the San Juan river is one of the most impor- 
tant positions which the Government needs to retain. The 
efforts of the revolution may be made on that side. * •* * 
To strike a blow upon that line is, therefore, the best thing to 
be done, because they (the enemies) may attempt to take pos- 
session of the frontier of Costa Rica to make of it the bases 
of their operations." 

" It may also happen that the Government of Costa Rica, 
alarmed by the revolution of Nicaragua, * * * acting 
with exaggerated zeal, and possibly trusting in the inability of 
the Government of this Republic to protect the points on 
THIS LINE, may attempt to take possession of El Castillo and 
of the San Carlos fortresses for the purpose of protecting 
itself (the Government of Costa Rica) against any attempt of 
INVASION OF ITS TERBiTOEY which, ou this side, might be 
made." * * 

* * * "It being necessary to provide the Government 
with soldiers, * * * you shall be very particular in re- 
cruiting people, * * * sending private agents to the ter- 
ritory of Costa Rica, where, hy no ineans, any armed force 
should enter, unless with the written permission of the com- 
7)xanding officers of the different posts protecting the frontier 
of that Republic." * * * 



81 

The frontier spoken of in these instructions is the one drawn 
by the treaty of limits of 1858, and the commanding officers 
of the different posts of the Costa Rican frontier were those 
of the posts established to watch over the San Carlos and Sara- 
piqui rivers as far as their confluence with the San Juan. 

The treaty had, therefore, in the eyes of tlie Government of 
Nicaragua, perfect efficiency. 

In contrast with the firmness now shown l)y Nicaragua to 
maintain the invalidity of the treaty of limits, Costa Rica must 
show the persistence with which, before she withdrew her ad- 
herence to the Ayon-Ohevalier contract, the contrary opinion 
was maintained and carried into practi(ial effect by the same 
Republic. It is for that reason that I have mentioned the 
three facts above stated. 

On the other hand, it is worth while to notice here that the 
eagerness with which, subsequent to 1872, the validity of the 
treaty of limits has been denied in Nicaragua, says nothing in 
favor of the pretensions of that Government, nor weakens in 
the least the force of its previous contrary action. Admis- 
sions cannot be retracted. 

And as the defense of Nicaragua wishes to tind in the al- 
ways firm and never contradictory action of the Government 
of Costa Rica some support of the conclusions adverse to the 
treaty which it formulates, it alleges the fact that Costa Rica 
acceded in good-will, and on several occasions, to give an 
amicable solution to the annoying question del)ated between 
the two countries ever since 1872, and cites especially the con- 
ference held at Managua, and the treaty made at that city on 
July 26th instant, where an indirect acknowledgment of the 
imperfection of the treaty of limits is alleged to be found. 

The Treaty of Managua reads as follows : 

" Article 1. The Government of Nicaragua withdraws the 
objections made to the validity of the treaty of limits with the 
Government of Costa Rica, signed on April 15, 1858, since it 
will obtain from Congress on its part (the part of the Gov- 
ernment of Nicaragua) the second ratification which it (the 
Government of Nicaragua) has maintained to be indispensable. 
6 



82 

The substance of tliis Article recognizes and proclaims, in a 
solemn and categorical manner, the justice of the cause which, 
during so many years, Costa Kica had been defending. No 
other meaning can be given to the withdrawal made by the 
Government of Nicaragua of the objections it had made against 
the treaty. 

And, as after so many years of Nicaragua's having main- 
tained that a second ratification of the treaty was necessary in 
order to cause her to consider herself bound by it, it was not 
possible that she should herself retract this point of mere form, 
nor was it advisable for Costa llica that any formality which 
Nicaragua, whether right or wrong, thought necessary to protect 
the treaty against new objections, should be omitted, it is not 
to be wondered at that the said ratification should have been 
mentioned in the final part of Article I of the treaty of Man- 
agua ; but this i-atification was spoken of not as being a nec- 
essary formality asked for by Costa Rica, but as one considered 
by Nicai-agua to be indispensable, altliough, in point of fact, it 
was not. The treaty of Managua could refer not to one or two 
ratifications of the treat}^ of 1858, but to as many as Nicara- 
gua should like to consider necessary to acknowledge herself 
bound without danger of new retractations. This did not im- 
ply that Costa Rica accepted the necessity of such formalities. 

If the treaty of Managua had reached its consummation, 
Nicaragua would have had the satisfaction to ratify for the 
sixth time, if I am not mistaken, the treaty of 1858, while 
Costa Rica, on her part, would liave experienced the one of 
seeing, finally and forever, settled her difference with Nicara- 
gua, through the withdrawal, by the latter, of the objections 
made by her to the treaty of limits. 

It is, therefore, inconceivaMe how the treat}'' of Managua 
could have been spoken of in the defense of Nicaragua. If 
that instrument expresses the right criterion of the Nicaraguan 
Government, it furnishes the most eloquent testimony to the 
fact that, substantially, and laying aside this or that formality, 
the treaty of limits is valid, and not only valid but useful and 
profitable for Nicaragua. 



Chapter XII. 

IMPORTANCE OF THE DOCUMENTS BEFERRED TO IN THIS CHAPTER FOR DE- 
STROYING THE EFFECT OF THE PERSISTENCE WITH WHICH NICARAGUA 
HAS MAINTAINED, EVER SINCE 1872, THE NON-VALIDITY OF THE TREATY OF 
LIMITS. 

The Government of Nicaragua having boasted of its persist- 
ence, ever since 1872, in maintaining that the treaty of limits 
of 1858 is not binding npon it, and it having formulated, also, 
the charge of inconsistency against the Govern racnt of Costa 
Rica, it does not seem inopportune to set forth here, as briefly 
as possible, the substance of certain documents which I ap- 
pended to my Argument, and of others which I append to the 
present Reply, and show plainly thereby the truth of the facts. 
Documents "Nos. 23, 24, and 29, dated the first on May 16, 
1858, the second and third on June 27 of the same year, and 
the fourth on January 25, 1861 ; and those marked 31, 34, 
and 35, dated, respectively, on April 1, May 26, and July 5, 
1863, appended to the Argument of Costa Rica, will show 
to the Arbitrator that Costa Rica exercised during that exten- 
sive period of time, not only without opposition, but at the 
request of Nicaragua, the rights recognized to her by Article 
YIII of the treaty in regard to intervention in grants of transit 
and canal. 

Documents Nos. 43 and 45 of the same Argument, dated, 
respectively, May 26 and July 31, 1864, will also show to him 
that Costa Rica, six years after the date of the treaty, was ex- 
ercising sovereign rights over the territory of the right bank 
of the San Juan river, and making explorations therein in order 
to build a better and shorter road from the interior of the 
countrv to the river bank. ^ 

Those marked Nos. 37, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 
49, 50, 51, 53, and 55 in the Appendix to the present Reply, 
equally show the exercise by Costa Rica of her sovereign 



84 

rio-hts over the ten-itory which, according to the treaty of 1858, 
beh:»ng's to her. 

Docunient No. 47, of June 26, 1866, will show specially how 
eni|>hatic was the protest of the Government of Costa Rica, 
which the Government of Nicaragua accepted as just, against 
the attempt to increase the volume of the waters of the lower 
part of the San Juan river at the expense of the Colorado river, 
which belongs to Costa Rica. 

Docniment No. 50, dated January 25, 1867, will show also 
that Costa Rica, nine years after the conclusion of the treaty, 
carried it into execution, with the consent of Nicaragua, by es- 
tablishing a sanitary cordon at a place of the frontier which 
the said treaty had marked out. 

Document No. 51 of November 25, 1868, will show in the 
same manner that Costa Rica, ten years after the treaty, was 
exercising the rights which the said treaty recognized to her 
over the San Juan river. 

Document No. 56 of July 22, 1872, will give testimony of 
the most eloquent character to the manner with which the 
Costa Rican Government listened to the so-called " doubts," 
which, then, for the first time, after 14 years of uninterrupted 
observance, arose in Nicaragua as to the validity of the treaty. 

Document No. 58, dated December 3, 1875, will give an 
instance of the manner in which Costa Rica, seventeen years 
subsequent to the date of the treaty, continued to exercise her 
rights over the whole territory which that convention had 
given her. 

And finally, documents Nos. 59 and 60, respectively dated 
on June 26, 1880, and September 10, 1886, will show, the for- 
mer, how Costa Rica, twenty-two years after the date of the 
treaty, protested against the non-compliance in regard to her 
of the provisions of Article "VIII of the same treaty, in the 
matter of the company organized in New York under the title 
of " Provisional Company of Interoceanic Canal," and the 
latter, the acceptance by Costa Rica of the explanations made 
b}^ the Government of Nicaragua for the non-compliance with 
Baid provisions. 



85 

It is seen, therefore, from all of this, that since the month 
of May, 1858, to the month of September, 1886, Costa Rica 
has not receded one jot from her position in maintaining tlie 
efficiency and validity of the treaty to which she signed her 
name, and which on her part she always complied with faith- 
fully and religiously. 



CONCLUSION. 



CONCLUSION. 



Before closing the present reply, the defense of Costa Rica 
deems it advisable to present a general summing up of its con- 
tents, which it submits as follows : 



Under the arbitration treaty made at Guatemala, no possi- 
bility exists for the making of two awards, one deciding the 
principal question, and another, subsequent in date, on supple- 
mentary or secondary points suggested by Nicaragua. Both 
subjects must be the matter of one and the same decision. 

The time for presentation of doubtful points, granted by 
the treaty of Guatemala, having been allowed by Nicaragua to 
pass nnavailed, she cannot now be permitted to present those 
points, nor is Costa Rica bound to accept them as forming a 
part of the question submitted to arbitration. 



All Royal Ordinances and Letters-Patent issued by the 
Spanish Kings, as well as all opinions of writers on the his- 
tory of the Indies, are not, nor can they be, admitted in the 
present controversy, except as simply illustrating the historical 
precedents of the question, because the original rights of the 
parties were actually modified by subsequent transactions, as, 
for instance, the annexation of Guanacaste to Costa Rica, 
which took place, as all others, after the independence from 
Spain had been secured. 



This is neither the proper time nor the proper place to make 
any declaration whatsoever, affecting questions not at issue, and 



90 

neither debated nor submitted, as for instance the one referring 
to the determination of the limits between Costa Rica and Nic- 
aragua, sliould the treaty of April 15, 1858, be adjudged void. 



The uti possidetis of 1821 has notliing to do with the present 
question, because the subject under discussion is not the terri- 
torial extent of either Costa Rica or Nicaragua, independently 
of the treaty of April 15, 1858. 

And notice must be taken of the fact that, although the 
doctrine of the uti possidetis of 1821 is in general correct, it 
is not so always in all cases and under all circumstances, but 
admits of modification under other rights of possession. 



Had that doctrine been absolute and indisputable, Chiapas 
and Soconusco would have belonged to Guatemala until 1883, 
Sonsonate would belong to-day to the same Republic, &c., &c. 
The real and true uti possidetis is the one of 1838, when the 
federal bond was dissolved. The status which, as far as pos- 
session was concerned, existed at that time, and not the one 
existing in 1821, served as basis for the organization of the 
five Sovereign Republics of Central America. 



The defense of Nicaragua considers that the treaty of limits 
of 1858 is a special one ; but notice must be taken that, as far 
as requisites and formalities in regard to the manner of its con- 
clubion are concerned, there is no diffei-ence at all that can be 
admitted between it and any other treaty whatsoever, since 
it was, as all others are, negotiated and concluded by plenipo- 
tentiaries appointed by the Executive, approved by the Ex- 
ecutive, ratified by the Legislative, and exchanged and pro- 
mulgated by the Executive. 

This is the regular order of proceedings in use in all nations 
in regard to treaties ; and the assertion can be made confidently 



91 

that there is not a single precedent authorizing the course of 
proceedings, which according to the defense of Nicaragua the 
treaty of 1858 ought to have gone through, and which is, no 
doubt, a novelty in the Law of Nations. 

If the treaty of limits is in any way special, it is so only in 
one respect, to wit : that while all public treaties are by their 
own nature permanent, for it is upon them that the peace of 
the nations therein concerned rest, and while all of them when 
once concluded cannot be allowed to fall, easily, or on light 
reasons, and much less for alleged informalities, never spoken 
of until after both contracting parties have been for years ex- 
ecuting it, such a fate has not befallen, however, the treaty of 
limits. 



The treaty of limits of 1858 was not concluded, approved, 
ratified, exchanged, and carried into effect under the sway of 
the Constitution of 1838, but under the sway of a transitory 
exceptional dictatorial regime, in which the National Consti- 
tutional Assembly excercised without limitation all the pow- 
ers of the nation. 



The laws under whose empire the treaty was made were the 
decrees of December 1, 1857, and February 5, 1858, the pro- 
visions of which were literally complied with. 



There is no conflict between the treaty of limits and the 
Constitution of 1838. 

(a.) Because the Constitution of 1838 did not include the 
District of Nicoya within the territory of Nicaragua, since, as 
stated by the former Nicaraguan Constitution of April 8, 1826, 
the said District did not belong to her. 



92 

(b.) Because the Constitution of 1838 did not either include 
the territory south of the San Juan river, because said river 
was the limit clearly defined by the plain provisions of the 
Costa Rican Constitution of 1825 for the sovereignty of Costa 
Rica. 

(e.) Because the settlement of 1858 had been foreseen by the 
said Constitution of 1838, wherein it was provided that as 
soon as such settlement should be reached it was to be under- 
stood as being embodied in the Constitution itself. 

(d.) Because the Constitution of 1838 was not the funda- 
mental law by which the perfection of the treaty should be 
governed. 



Costa Rica maintains that the treaty of 1858 is as ranch an 
international convention as any other whatsoever; and as Nic- 
aragua maintains that it is an amendment of the Constitution 
the burden of proof falls upon her. She has not produced it, 
nor can she do so, since the very first of all her laws on the 
matter, the foundation and source of them all, which is the 
Constitution of 1826, declares that the District of Nicoya does 
not form part of Nicaragua. 



Supposing that the Nicaraguan Constitution of 1838 should 
have declared that the District of Guanacaste and the territory 
south of the San Juan river belonged to that Republic, a 
declaration which was never made, the effect thereof could 
never prevail against the fundamental laws of Costa Rica, 
which were previous — one of January 21, 1825, and the other 
the annexation of Nicoya of December 9th of the same year. 



Ever since April 8, 1826, the date of the first Constitution 
of Nicaragua, that State may have had more or less reason 
upon which to set forth a claim to sovereignty over Guana- 



93 



caste ; but she had no reason whatever to declare that the said 
District was inchided in her territory. 



If the doctrines maintained by Nicaragua in her Argument 
should he admitted, scarcely one single treaty of limits could 
possibly stand. Which of them has not wounded in some way 
or another the real or alleged sovereignty of either of the par- 
ties ? Which one has ever been submitted to the special 
course of proceedings provided for constitutional amendments? 



If the treaty of limits has to fall because Article 194: of the 
Constitution of 1838 was not complied with, its fall will drag 
down with it the whole political reconstruction of Nicaragua 
accomplished by the Assembly of 1858. Article 194 was 
not taken into consideration at all for the purposes of that re- 
construction, although, under Article 196 of the same instru- 
ment, the former Article ought to have been followed in a gen- 
eral reform of the Constitution. 



The first Costa Kican Constitution has been cited to prove 
that Guanacaste does not form part of Costa Rica ; but no 
notice has been taken of the fact that the annexation of 
Guanacaste to Costa Eica took place ten months and eighteen 
days subsequent to the date of that Constitution. The Con- 
stitution was promulgated on January 28, 1825; and the an- 
nexation of Guanacaste was made by Federal decree of De- 
cember 9 of the same year. 



If such a ratification as the one asked for is wanting, there 
are no less than four or five subsequent ratifications given by 
different Nicaraguan Legislatures. 



94 

The whole of the present question is narrowed down to the 
proper construction of this phrase : " The Constituent Assem- 
bly of Nicaragua, in use of its legislative powers, &c., &c.," 
and whether the use of the word " legislative " is proper or 
improper ; but, in good faith, that word cannot be understood 
to mean anything diffei-ent from the desire that the treaty 
should produce such effects as those intended by the contract- 
ing parties. 



The validity of the treaty has been repeatedly recognized 
by several Cabinets of Nicaragua between 1858 and 1872 ; 
but the change of mind that has been experienced in that Re- 
public since 1872, under color of dovhis, does not deprive the 
said acknowledgments of their efficiency. 



The treaty of limits was negotiated, concluded, and per- 
fected at a time in which Nicaragua was in full and perfect 
peace, Nicaragua being in possession and enjoyment of Ik^' 
lands, waters, ports, towns, efec; 



Even granting that the treaty of limits involved aliena- 
tion of territory, that alienation could be made under the Con- 
stitution of 1838, by the Assembly of 1858, or by any other 
legislative body, without any previous amendment of the fun- 
damental law. 



The Assembly of 1858 gave to the treaty of limits the char- 
acter of a treaty, and not that of an amendment to the Con- 
stitution. And now it is too late to oppose the authentic in- 
terpretation made by the Constituent Legislator of Nicaragua, 
and wiiich, like all interpretations of its kind, is a law of the 
State. 



95 

The failure of the accessory does not destroy the principal ; 
and the treaty of limits cannot fail because tlie guarantee of 
Salvador is wanting. Such a guarantee was not essential to 
the treaty. 



The guarantee of Salvador was not the only consideration, 
or the principal one, which led Nicaragua to bind herself. 
Such a guarantee did not form a part of the consideration. 



The stipulation of Article X of the treaty never was a right 
for Nicaragua and a burden for Costa Rica, but a stipulation 
of mutual effect for and against both parties. 



The Grovernment of Costa Rica has always complied in 
good faith with the treaty of limits, and no act can be cited 
performed by it which reveals hesitation or doubt as to its val- 
idity. If it has permitted the efficiency of that treaty to be 
doubted in Nicaragua, and if it has endeavored to smooth the 
differences arising out of that action, that does not argue 
against the intimate conviction entertained by Costa Rica of 
the justice of her cause, but only shows once more her tra- 
ditional policy of peace and concord with the other nations of 
Central America, and especially Nicaragua. 



The treaty of limits was embodied in the Nicaraguan Con- 
stitution of 1858. 



The treaty of limits has been respected up to the present 
time as a status quo in spite of the present controversy ; and 
it is agreed that it shall be the status quo until all the questions 
pending between the two countries are finally settled. 



96 



If the treaty of 1858 falls, Costa Rica recovers thereby her 
ancient, historical, and legitimate limits of the La Flor and the 
Sapoa rivers, the lake, and the San Juan river. 



I have thus far given the general recapitulation of this 
reply. 

I must now add a few words about a point of special impor- 
tance, that is, the one relative to the authenticity of the nu- 
merous documents appended to my Argument and to the pres- 
ent Reply, or which have been quoted in both of them. To 
file them all in the original, or in authenticated copies thereof, 
within such a short time as that granted for the preparation of 
both arguments would have been little short of a physical im- 
possibility, besides being unnecessary. It is an impossibility, 
because many of those papers are in the Archives of Spain, 
the Mother Country, or in those of the ancient capital of the 
Kingdom of Guatemala; and it is unnecessary, because they all 
have been recently published. 

In regard to the documents not in those Archives, and which 
are found in collections of laws and official newpapers, both of 
Costa Rica and Nicaragua, they are in my possession, either 
in the original printing or certified copies. 

The defense of Costa Rica vouches for the authenticity of 
all the documents which it has presented or quoted, and will 
exhil)it the originals or authenticated copies of those which the 
Arbitrator may be pleased to designate, should he deem it 
necessary. 

It also holds at the disposal of the Arbitrator all the books 
that it has cited. 

In conclusion, perhaps it may not be out of place to re- 
fer to the opinion of one of the most conspicuous men of 
Nicaragua, General Maximo Jerez, who, when the question 
about the treaty of limits began to be agitated in that country, 
expressed himself in the Nicaraguan Senate in the following 
lano-uaiie : 



97 

" From the beginning of this question on the validity or 
nullity of the treaty of limits of 1858, I always thought 
that we are on the wrong side. It always seemed to me that 
the reasons now alleged against the construction which we place 
upon the Nicaraguan laws at the time of the treaty are good 
at the most, and this is granting too much, to render that con- 
struction doubtful ; and, under these circumstances, I never 
shall deem it proper for the public authorities of Nicaragua 
to declare, in the face of the world, and for the purpose of 
nullifying that treaty, that they, like children, did not under- 
stand their own laws, nor were bound to know what they 
meant. 

" It is perhaps through a feeling analogous to the one I have 
just expressed that, although the Executive a long time ago 
submitted to the consideration of Congi-ess the unfortunate 
question of the nullity of the treaty of limits, Congress has re- 
mained silent, and allowed the treaty exchanged in 1858, and 
executed in good faith during fifteen years, to continue in ob- 
servance." ^ 

The defense of Costa Hica has nothing to add to the pre- 
ceding words of the Nicaraguan Senator, General Jerez, and 
confines itself to respectfully await such uecision as the learned 
and upright Arbitrator shall be pleased to pass on the question. 
PEDRO PEREZ ZELEDON, 
Envoy Extraordinary and Minister 

Pleyiijpotentiary of Costa Rica. 
Washington, D. C, 

December 2, 1887. 



' Apuatamientos Qeograficos, Estadisticos e Historicos por Joaquin Ber- 
nardo Calvo. San Jose de Costa Rica, 1886. Imprenta Nacional 1887, page 
18. 

7 



DOCUMENTS. 



DOCUMENTS. 



No. 1. 



Royal Ordinance of February 10, 15Y6,yr-»r the reduction of 
the Province of Taguzga.lj)a^ situated to the north of the 
San Juan de Nicaragua river. '^ 

The King, 

To the President, and the Judges of onr Kojal Aiidien- 
cia, sitting at the city of Santiago, of the Province of Gua- 
temala : 

It has been represented to us on the part of Captain Diego 
Lopez, a resident of the city of Trnxillo, of the Province of 
Honduras, that it is advisable and very necessary for the ser- 
vice of Grod oar Lord, and that of ourselves, that the Province 
of Taguzgalpa, also called New Cartago, which is in the said 
Province, should be conquered and peopled by Spaniards ; 
that many years ago the city named Elgueta was founded 
there and peopled, but had to be abandoned owing to the ina- 
bility of its inhabitants to resist the strong attacks of the natives ; 
and that he^ the said Diego Lopez, would undertake, if we were 
pleased to accede to it, the said conquest and peopling, within 
four years, and at his own expense, provided that he would be 
granted the same favors that were granted to Captain Diego 
de Artieda, to whom we entrusted the discovery and settle- 
ment of the Province of Costa Rica ; and whereas all of this 
has been heard and considered in our Council of the Indies, 
and the said Council resolved that we might issue this, our 



^From Coleccion de Documetitos ineditos relatives al descubrimiento, 
conquista y organizacion de las antiguas posesiones espanolas de America 
y Oceania, sacadas de los Archivos del Reyno y muy especialmente del de 
Tndias. Competentemente autorizada. Vol. xiv, pages 528 to 537. 



102 

present ordinance, to which we have been pleased to accede : 
"We do, tliorefore, connnand you to enter, as soon as this ordi- 
nance reaches you, into an agreement with tlie said Diego 
Lopez for the aforesaid purposes, observing tlie requisites pro- 
vided for in the " Instructions " and ordinances in force relat- 
ing to new settlements. And as soon as the said agreement is 
entered into, and before it is carried into execution, you shall 
submit it to us, together with your opinion about it, addressed 
to our Council aforesaid, to provide and decide as advisable. 

Given at Madrid on February 10, 1576. 

I, THE KING. 

By command of His Majesty. 

^ ANTONIO DE ERASSO. 

By virtue of the foregoing ordinance, an agreement for the 
conquest of Taguzgalpa was made in Guatemala, between Li- 
centiate Palacio, an Associate Justice of the Audiencia, com- 
missioned to that effect, and the said Diego Lopez ; and the 
limits of the Province were marked as follows : 

Firstly. His Majesty will appoint him his Governor and 
Captain-General of the said Province, which is the whole land 
included between the mouth of El Desaguadero, from its 
northern bank, and Cape Camaron, at the point where the 
Province of Honduras begins, with all the country included 
therein, until reaching the boundary and jurisdiction of the 
Province of Nicaragua and Nueva Segovia, and what is that 
of Honduras ; and the said Captain Diego Lopez shall have 
the said Governorship during his lifetime, with the salary of 
two thousand ducats, to be paid from the Treasury or revenues 
belonging to His Majesty in the said Province ; but if no such 
funds should exist, His Majesty shall not be bound to pay any- 
thing on account of that salary ; and after the death of said 
Diego Lopez, his eldest son or son-in-law, as his heir, shall 
succeed him in this grant, provided that he is a person having 
the necessary qualifications and being His Majesty pleased to 
accept. 



103 



No. 2. 



The President of the Royal Aucliencia of Guateraala trans- 
mits to the Governor, and to the most Nohle Corporation 
of the city of Cartago, a resolution, hy which the election 
of members of the Spanish Cortes for Costa Rica and Nicoya 
was ordered to he made at that city. — It appears from, this 
document that the District of Nicoya, had actually been 
annexed to Costa. Rica ever since May, 1813, about eight 
TEABs before the independence from the mother country. 

A preparatory meeting having been held ,the following res- 
olution was passed: 

Whereas, upon the reading of the official letter addressed to 
His Excellency the President by the Most Xoble Corporation 
of the city of Cartago, it appears that the population of Costa 
Rica is alleged to be only 41,000 inhabitants, etex iN^cLUDi^fG 

THE DISTRICT OF NlCOTA, WHICH HAS BEE2f A V .VEXED TO CoSTA 

Rica, which is less than the total which the Constitution re- 
quires, and that for this reason the said Governor and Council 
request that for the purposes of electing two members of Con- 
gress the said Province of Costa Pica should be united to the 
one of Leon, of Nicaragua, or that the districts of Masaya and 
Nicaragua (Pivas) should be incorporated into her ; 

And whereas the Most Xoble Council of the city of Leon 
reported adversely, on the grounds that the purposes had in view 
by Cartago were simply to alleviate the burden of taxes weighing 
upon it, and cause some other districts belonging to Nicaragua 
to share that burden, and that the present member of Con- 
gress for the said Province Don Florentine Castillo, had 
stated in an official letter addressed by him to His Excellency 
the President on June 8, 1812, that the same Council of the city 
of Cartago in its instructions to him had admitted the fact that 
the population of Costa Pica was about 70,000 inhabitants, and 
that even subtracting the natives of Africa, fortunately very 



104 

few there, there would still remain about sixty thousand peo- 
ple of the other classes. 

And whereas the said Most Noble Council of the city of 
Leon fnrtlier represented that in case that the population of 
Costa llica was not large enough, the District of Nicoya, which 
was bordering upon her, might be attached to her ; 

And whereas due consideration has been taken of all the 

OTHER REASONS AND GROUNDS UPON WHICH IT WAS ORDERED THAT 

THE SAID District of Nicoya, united to Costa Rica, should 

ELECT IN THE LATTER ONE MeMBER OF CoNGRESS TO REPRESENT IN 

THE Cortes the two localities, and promote there the wel- 
fare OF their worthy inhabitants ; 

And whereas no exact census has been made, showing any 
error in the approximate calculation made by this Assembly 
(Junta) upon the data and information on record ; 

And whereas the resolution which ordered that the election 
for one Member of Congress should take place at the capital 
of Costa Eica has proved beneficial to that Province, worthy to 
a great degree of the attentions of the government, and frees 
her people from the troubles and expense of a trip to Leon, many 
leagues distant, for the purposes of the said election. 

Ordered., That the decision of this Board (Junta) be carried 
out, and that in consequence thereof the elections for Member 
of Congress be made under and according to the instructions 
enacted l)y this Board." 

And this I communicate to you for your knowledge, and 
for such compliance therewith as may be incumbent upon you. 

May God preserve you many years. 

Guatemala, May 3, 1813. 

BUSTAMANTE. 

To the Governor and the Most Hoble Council 
of the City of Cartago. 



105 



No. 3. 



The first Constituent Congress of Costa Rica directs that the 
Districts of Nicoya and Santa Cruz should be considered as 
temporarily annexed to the State, and protected as such. 

The Constitutent Congress, in answer to your communication 
of the 30th of last month, wherein, by order of the Supreme 
Chief Magistrate, you ask for instructions as to what 
must be done with the District of Nicoya, resolved at the 
meeting held yesterday, as follows : That the Districts of Ni- 
coya and Santa Cruz must be considered annexed to this State 
ad interim, until otherwise decided finally by the High Powers, 
and that therefore the said districts must be protected and 
taken care of with as much circumspection, prudence, and 
earnestness as might be granted to any other integral part of 
the Costa Rican State. 

And by order of Congress, and returning to you the papers 
of the case, we transmit the above to you for your information 
and the proper effects. 

God, Union, and Liberty. 

San Jose, January 29, 1825. 

MANUEL FERNANDEZ, 

Secretary. 
MANUEL ALYARADO, 

Secretary. 

To The Citizen Secretaky-General j[?/'0 tern. 



106 



No. 4. 

Measures taken by the Constitutional Assembly of Costa Rica 
to carry into execution the Federal Decree which annexed 
the District of Nicoya to her own Territory. 

Ordek. 

Office of the Secretaries 

OF THE Constitutional Assembly, 

To The Citizen Minister-General : 

The Assembly having been made acquainted with the terms 
of the Federal Decree, declaring that the District of Nicoya 
BE annexed to this State 

Resolved, That the Executive, in compliance therewith, shall 
cause the said District to be furnished, as soon as possible, with 
all the necessary officers ; that the different branches of the 
administration of its Government shall be organized there in 
the proper manner ; that the Constitution and the Laws of 
THE State shall be communicated to it and enforced ; and that 
a census, as approximate as possible, of the population of the 
said District shall be made and sent to the Assembly in order 
that it may resolve about the representation to be given the 
District in that body, and the manner of election. 

And by order of the Assembly we transmit the above to you 
for the information of the Chief Magistrate. 

God, Union, and Liberty. 

San Jose, April 14, 1826. 

PEDKO ZELEDON, 

Secretary. 
FKANCISCO MARIA OREAMUNO, 

Seci'etary. 



lOT 



No. 5. 

Extracts from the Constitution of the State of Nicaragua of 
April 8, 1826, showing that at that time the District of Gtca- 
nacaste or Nicoya loas not an integi^al jpart of the State, hut 
had been, hy its own will, and with the sanction of the Federal 
Power, annexed to the bordering State of Costa Rica. 

In the presence of God, the Author and Supreme Legislator 
of the Universe : 

We, the Representatives of the people of Nicaragua i?i 
Constituent Assembly convened, being fully and lawfully au- 
thorized hy our constituents, and by the Federal Compact of 
the Republic, to enact an organic law which may secure the 
prosperity and happiness of the State, consisting in the perfect 
enjoyment of the rights of man and citizen, namely, liberty, 
equality, safety, and property, have hereby decreed and sanc- 
tioned the following political Constitution : 

Title First. 

Of the State, its Territory, its Rights, and its Duties. 

Chapter I. 

Of the State and its Territory. 

Article 1. The State shall retain the name of State of 
Nicaragua. It consists of all its inhabitants ; and it forms 
part of the Central American Confederation. 

Article II. The territory op the State embraces the 
Districts of Nicaragua, Granada, Managua, Masaya, Ma- 
TAGALPA, Segovia, Leon, Subtiaba, and El Realejo.^ 

Its limits are : On the east, the Sea of the Antilles ; on the 



^ The Dislrict of Nicoya was not named in this description. It had been 
segregated from Nicaragua and incorporated into Costa Rica two years be- 
fore. 



108 

north, the State of Honduras ; on the west, tlie Gulf of Con- 

chagua ; on the south, tlie Pacific Ocean ; and on the south 

east, tlie free State of Costa Rica. 

Article III. The above-named terkitoey shall be divided 

into Departments, and a special law, providing for the number 

and limits thereof, shall be enacted. 

* ^- * * * * 

Article CLXYIII. The present Constitution is solemnly 

sanctioned by this Constituent Assembly. 

Given in the City of Leon, on April 8th, 1826. 

MANUEL MENDOZA, 

Dejnity fo7' Matagalpa, President. 

ISIDRO REYES, 

Deputy for Leon., Vice-President. 

PEDRO MUNOZ, 

Deputy for Nicaragua. 

RAMON PACHECO, 

Deputy for Subtiaba. 

GREGORIO PARRAS, 

Deputy for El Bealejo. 

SILVESTRE SELVA, 

Deputy for Granada. 

FRANCISCO RENASCO, 

Deputy for Masaya. 

JUAN JOSE ZAYALA, 

Deputy for Managua. 

JOSE YICENTE MORALES, 

Deputy {substitute^ for Leon. 

JUAN MANUEL ZAMORA, 

Deputy for Masaya. 

FRANCISCO PARRALES, 

Deputy for Nicaragua., Secretary. 

SEBASTIAN ESCOYAR, 

Deputy for Granada, Secretary.'^ 

' As was natural aad logical Nicoya was not represeated in the Constituent 
Assembly of Nicaragua. 



109 

Leon, April 22, 1826. 
Let it be executed. 

Given under my hand, sealed with the seal of the State and 
countersigned by the Secretary in charge, ad interim, of all the 
Departments of the Grovernment. 

JOSE MIGUEL DE LA QUADKA. 
JUAN AEGUELLO, 

Secretary. 



110 



No. 6. 

Schedule shoiobig the way in which the districts of the State 
of Costa Rica should elect their deputies. 

The letter " A " indicates the place where the parochial 
electors should meet for the election of tlie district electors ; 
and the letter " B " indicates the place where the district 
electors must meet to elect the deputies and their substitutes, 
and also the persons who must exercise the supreme powers of 
the State. 



Electoks. 


Districts. 


Parochial. 


District. 


Deputies. 


Substitutes. 


San Jose. 
1 Population, 16,288. 


San Jose. A. B. 3 
Curridabat, 1 
Aserri, 1 


11 


3 


1 


Cartago. 
Population, 12,330. 


Cartago. A. B. 22 
Coo, 1 
Quircot, 1 
Tobosi, 1 
Tres Eios, 1 


8 


2 


1 
1 


Heredia. 
Population, 12,260. 

Alajueln. 
Population, 8,027. 


Heredia. A. B. 22 
Barba, 3 


8 


2 


1 


Alajuela. A. B. 16 


5 


2 


1 


Bagaces. 
Population, 1,444. 


Canas. A. 1 
Bagaces, 1 
Esparza, 1 


1 


Escacu. 
Population, 3,273. 

Ujarraz. 

Population, 2,605. 


Escacii. A. B. 5 
Pacaca, 2 


3 


1 





Ujarraz. A. B. 3 
Olosi, 2 
Cucurrique, 1 


2 


1 





Terraba. 
Population. 1,019. 


Terraba. A. 2 
Boruca, 1 


1 


Nicoya. 
Population, 4,600. 


Santa Cruz. A. B. 3 
Nicoya, 3 
Guanacaste, 3 


3 


1 






San Jose, September 28, 1826. 



CASTRO, 

Secretary. 
OREAMUNO, 
Proto Secretary. 



Ill 

No. 7. 

The District of Nicoya called to take part in the election of 
the Supreme Federal Authorities ^ hy order of the Congress of 
Costa Rica^ and as an integral part of the laMer State. 

The Supreme Chief Magistrate of the free State of Costa 
E.ica, 

Whereas the Assembly has decreed and the Council sanc- 
tioned what follows : 

The Constitutional Assembly of the free State of Costa Rica, 
in compliance with Title III of the Federal Constitution, as 
far as the District of Nicoya, newly incorporated into this 
State by decree of the Federal Congress of December 9, 1825, 
is Concerned, has been pleased to decree and decrees : 

Article 1. The District of Nicoya shall take part in the 
election of the Supreme Federal authorities in the Western 
Department of this State by choosing the electors to represent 
it in the Electoral College. 

Article 2. The schedule hereto appended shall designate 
the share of representation to be given to each district and town 
for the election aforesaid ; and the schedule appended to the 
decree of October 13th of last year is hereby repealed. In 
everything else the election shall be conducted according to 
the provision of that decree. 

To The Representative Council. 

Given at San Jose, on September 29, 1826. 
PEDRO ZELEDON, 

President. 
JOSE ANTONIO CASTRO, 

Secretary. 

FRANCISCO MARIA OREAMUNO, 

Proto Secretary. 



112 

Hall of the Council, 
San Jose, October 6, 1826. 
Let it pass to the Executive. 

JOS£ RAFAEL de GALLEGOS, 

President. 
GREGORIO HERRERO, 

Secretary. 

Therefore let it be executed. 
San Jose, October 10, 1826. 

JUAN MORA. 

To Citizen Manuel Aguilae. 



113 



No. 8. 

Nicoya is granted the right to take part in the election of the 
Suprevfie Authorities of the State of Costa Rica according to 
the Constitution thereof. 

The Supreme Chief Magistrate of the free State of Costa 
Rica, 

Whereas the Assembly has decreed and the Council sanc- 
tioned what follows : 

The Constitutional Assembly of the free State of Costa 
Rica, considering that the District of Nicoya, again annexed 
TO THIS State, ought to be ruled according to the Constitution, 
and to have such popular representation as provided by the 
same, has been pleased to decree, and does hereby decree, as 
follows : 

Article I, The District of Nicoya shall be at once repre- 
sented in the Constitutional Assembly by one Deputy, who 
shall be elected by the people, to serve this year and the next 
one of 1827. 

Article II. The said District shall take part at the proper 
time in the election of the Supreme Powers of the State ; and 
for that purpose three votes shall be allotted to it. 

Article III. The elections shall take place as provided by 
the Decree of the Constituent Congress of January 21, 1825, 
and by the schedule appended thereto, as now amended by the 
addition of the said District. 

To The Representative Council. 

Given at San Jose on September 28, 1826. 
PEDRO ZELEDON, 

President. 
JOSE ANTONIO CASTRO, 

Secretary. 
FRANCISCO MARIA OREAMUNO, 

Secretary. 
8 



114 

Hall of the Council, 

San Jose, October 6, 1826. 

Let it be transmitted to the Executive. 

JOS£ RAFAEL de GALLEGOS, 

President. 
GREGOIIIO HERRERO, 

Secretary. 

San Jose, October 10, 1826. 

Therefore let it be executed. 

JUAN MORA. 
To Citizen Manuel Aguilak. 



115 

No. 9. 
The Nicaraguan territory ends at the La Flor river. 

The Legislative AsBembly of the State of Nicaragua, con- 
sidering: — that the only road through which trade can be carried 
on between this State and the State of Costa Rica is exceedingly 
out of order, — that it is urgent to repair it in order to main- 
tain and facilitate relations of commerce, friendship, and reci- 
procity, — and that energetic measures are required to accom- 
plish this purpose, decrees : 

Article I. The road between the city of Rivas in Nicaragua 
and the District of Nicoya shall be repaired, as far as the 

RIVER CALLED La FlOR. ^ 



' Limit of the two States. 



116 



No. 10. 



The ConstiUitinnal Assembly of Costa Rica enacts several meas- 
ures for the cultivation of certain lands belonging to the 
State^ situated on the right hank of the San Juan del Norte 
river. 

The Supreme Chief Magistrate of the free State of Costa 
Rica. 

Whereas the Assembly has decreed, and the Council sanc- 
tioned, what follows : 

The Constitutional Assembly of the free State of Costa Rica, 
wishing to secure the welfare of the people and the prosperity 
of the State, taking into consideration that a great many tracts 
of land of considerable extent are found in it uncultivated and 
uninhabited, and that as long as they remain in this condition 
they are useless, while, on the contrary, if cultivated and set- 
tled they would produce much good ; wishing, therefore, to give 
some impulse to beneficial enterprises in this direction, and 
give some inducement by means of gratuitous grants of land to 
those who should desire to undertake them, has been pleased 
to decree, and does hereby decree, as follows : 

Article I. All those who shall settle upon lands in the 
north, northeast, east, and south, and cultivate them for five 
consecutive years, shall be granted the whole tract cultivated 
by them for the term of eight years, and also an additional 
" caballeria ;" 1 and those who shall so engage themselves in 
the cultivation of the land, or settle there, within two 
years after the publication of this law, shall be given, in addi- 
tion to the two rewards above named, one more " caballeria." 
Article II. In addition to the rewards granted in the fore- 
going Article, one more " caballeria " shall be given to those 



' Caballeria is a measure containing 45 hectareas, 25 areas, and f| square 
meters (Metric System). 



117 

who shall engage themselves in cultivating cocoa, or in plant- 
ing any kind of dye-wood. 

Article III. Those who shall engage themselves upon said 
lands in the raising of horned cattle, starting with from 25 to 
1,000 head, shall be granted a sitio (seven " caballerias ") of 
land ; and those starting with more than 1,000 head of cattle 
shall have two sitios, provided in both cases that the settle- 
ment is continued for live consecutive years ; and those 
who shall settle upon the lands within the next two years 
shall have three additional " caballerias." 

Aktiole IY. The favors granted by the Decree of July 14, 
1825, are hereby extended to every product grown, raised, or 
obtained in the aforesaid settlements. 

Article V. Every settler who should ask for the survey of 
his lands shall have his request granted, under the provisions 
of the Decree of May 27th ultimo ; and, if his petition is tiled 
within two years after the publication of tliis law, the additional 
favor shall be granted to him by allowing the operation to be 
made by a Commissioner appointed hy him, and sworn by the 
Intendente. The latter officer shall attend to everything else, 
including the issuing of the patent or title without charging 
any fee. 

Article VI. The lands to be granted, on the north and 
northeast, shall be as follows : along the road to the city of 
Alajuela, between the keighborhood of Frarjanes and 
THE ISLAND AND THE San Juan RIVER : along the road to San 

Jose BETWEEN THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF THE BlASCO AND S ANT A HoSA 
RIVERS AND THE BANKS OF THE SAID SaN JuAN RIVER ; along the 

road to Coo, between the neighborhood of the El Pescado river 
and the volcano of Turialba and beyond it; along the roads of 
Matina, between the Turialba river and the limits of Tucurrique 
and beyond it; and along the frontier of Colombia, between 
the mouth of the Santa Clara mountains and the border-line, 
this line being temporarily the one drawn from one of the 
two mentioned points to the other. On the south the Govern- 
ment shall in each case, as it presents itself, designate the 



118 

tracts of land to be allotted between the Portalon lands and 
the El Naranjo river, and also between the months of the great 
rivers of the interior and La Candelaria, and between the 
PENINSULA OF NiooTA OR Cabo Blanco, and the months of 
the Alvarado river, between the Gulf and the neighborhood of 
Barco-Quebrado. 

To the Representative Councii. 

Given at San Jose, this 26th day of October, 1828, 
FELIX HIDALGO, 

Yice- President. 
JOSE ANTONIO CASTRO, 

Secretary. 
PEDRO DOBLEZ. 

Proto Secretary. 

Hall of the Council, 

San Jose, iVcw??2^(37' 3, 1828. 
Let it be transmitted to the Executive. 

JOSE RAFAEL de GALLEGOS, 

President. 
GREGORIO GUERRERO, 

Secretary. 
Therefore let it be executed. 
San Jose, November 4, 1828. 

JUAN MORA. 
To Citizen Joaquin Beenardo Calvo. 



119 

No. 11. 

The village of Quanacaste is raised iy the Government of 
Costa Rica to the category of a town. 

The Supreme Chief Magistrate of the free State of Costa 
Rica, 

Whereas the Asseml)lj has decreed and the Council sjine- 
tioned what follows : 

The Extraordinary Assembly of the free State of Costa 
Rica, considering the meritorious circumstances of the village 
of Gnanacaste, its progress, and the increase of its population, 
lias been pleased to decree, and does hereby decree, as follows : 
Article I. The village of Gruanacaste is raised to the cat- 
egory of a town. 

Article II. The Executive shall issue the proper credential 
on stamped paper of the 2d class of seal No. 1. 

Let it be transmitted to the Representative Council. 
Given at San Jose on July 18, 1831. 

JOSE GABRIEL del CAMPO, 

President, 
MANUEL ALVARADO, 

Secretary. 
- RAFAEL OSEJO, 

Secretary. 

Hall of the Council, 
San Jose, July 23, 1881, 
Let it be transmitted to the Executive. 

BASILIC CARRILLO, 

President. 
JOSE ANSELMO SANCHO, 

Secretary. 
Therefore let it be executed. 
San Jos6, July 23, 1831. 

JUAN MORA. 
To the Citizen Joaquin Bernardo Calvo. 



120 



No. 12. 



The toum of Santa Cruz {in the District of Nicoya) has a 
Representative in the Assembly of the State of Costa Bica. 

Tlie Supreme Chief Magistrate of the free State of Costa 
liica, in pursuance of the provisions of Articles 51, 56, and 80 
of the Constitution of the State, for the renovation in the 
coining year 1833, of the supreme legislative, executive, and 
conservative powers, has been pleased to decree, and does 
hereby decree, as follows : 

The District Electoral College, to be appointed in Janu- 
ary of next year (1833), for the renovation of members 
of the supreme powers of the State, shall act as follows: * * 

7th. Santa Cruz shall retain the representation which, under 
the law of May 30, last year, it ouglit to have had. 

•X- ^ * * * * 

Let it be transmitted to the Executive. 
Given in San Jose on the 15th of May, 1832. 

JOAQUIN DE IGLESIAS, 

President. 
NICOLAS ULLOA, 

Secretary. 
JOSE MAKIA APJAS, 
Secretary. 
Therefore let it be executed. 
San Jose, May 18, 1832. 

JUAN MORA. 
To Citizen Joaquin Bernardo Calvo. 



121 



No. 13. 

Instructions given to the Special Commissioner of the Gov- 
ernment of Costa Rica to visit the Districts of Nicoya, and 
Bag aces. 

The Supreme Chief Mngistrate of the free State of Costa 
Kica : 

Whereas one of the first duties of tlie Executive power is 
to keep order and preserve the tranquillity of the State, taking 
for that effect such measures as may be deemed advisable ; 
and whereas an official communication, dated on the 24:th 
ultimo, from the Superior Court of Justice, and also several 
reports of the political authorities and of the Intendente, as 
well as reports from several trustworthy persons, have been re- 
ceived, all to the effect that the Districts of Nicoya and Ba- 
gaces are becoming demoralized, either for want of energy 
on the part of the local authorities and their failure to enforce 
the laws and superior orders, or owing to the insubordination 
which several emigrants from the State of Nicaragua have in- 
culcated in their inhabitants ; and whereas, if the proper 
measure is not taken in time to preserve order in that precious 
part of the State, the result will be to endanger public safety 
and tranquillity, to cause all the elements of prosperity to re- 
main stationery, if not to decline, and to subject the individual 
rights to the attacks of malice and lawlessness, and render the 
police either faulty or useless ; and whereas the lack of prompt 
knowledge on the part of the superior authority of what 
occurs in those districts renders it difficult for the Govern- 
ment to devise the proper means for enforcing the law 
and securing the happiness and welfare of tlie people ; and 
whereas, in consequence of the disorder therein prevalent, the 
public Treasury of that locality cannot get the means neces- 
sary for the support of the Government and the promotion of 
works of general interest, in spite of the meritorious circum- 



122 

stances as well as righteousness of the Intendente General 
of the State, Citizen Joaquin Rivas, I have therefore decided, 
in pursuance of Section 2d, Article LXXXII of the Organic 
Law, and of Articles XIII and XXXVII of the Hules and 
Regulations of September 23, 1831, to decree, and I do 
hereby decree, as follows : 

1st. Citizen Joaquin Rivas, the Intendente General, is hereby 
appointed Commissioner, for tlie Executive, and in i-epresenta- 
tion thereof, to go personally and as soon as possible to the Dis- 
tricts of Nicoya and Bagaces, and visit there with the zeal and 
activity characterizing him, all the villages and towns of both 
Districts, and do there and perform all that is provided for in 
this Decree and in the instructions which separately shall be 
given to liim. 

2d. The said Commissioner shall do and perform what 
Article 44 of the law of June 13, 1828, orders the superior 
political chief to do, and shall cause the municipal authorities 
to comply with all the laws communicated to them for the best 
order in the public administration, especially in matters of po- 
lice, education, increase of the municipal revenue, honest col- 
lection and disbursement of the public funds, the public health, 
the protection of the social guarantees, and the preservation of 
the archives. 

3d. The Commissioner shall also cause the Government's 
Decree of August 31, 1832, about vagrants and foreigners, to 
be strictly enforced ; and he shall not leave the town which he 
may be visiting without having caused all that has been pro- 
vided foi', to be put in practice and without having established 
in it primary schools. 

4th. The Commissioner shall also, in pursuance of the laws 
in force, inspect the oiiices in charge of the sale of stamped 
paper ; and he shall also inform hiiXiself of the condition of 
the public revenue, and cause the laws establishing taxes of 
all kinds to be enforced, giving for that purpose to each sub- 
ordinate such orders and instructions as may be required. 

5th. The Commissioner shall report to the Government the 



123 

result of his action, for which purpose he shall keep such reg- 
isters or journals as may be necessary; and, whenever he may 
deem it advisable, he shall communicate directly with the Gov- 
ernment from the place where he might happen to be. 

6th. The civil, military, and ecclesiastical authorities of the 
said Districts, and their towns and cities, shall receive and rec- 
ognize the aforesaid Inteudente as Commissioner of the Gov- 
ernment for the purposes aforesaid, and shall pay him such 
respect and consideration as is due to his character. 

Tth. The salary of $30 per month shall be paid the said 
Commissioner, in addition to the one he receives under the 
law as Intendente General ; and he shall be attended by 
two mounted orderlies. 

8th. The present Decree shall be printed, published, and 
circulated for its due execution. 

Given at the city of San Jose this Tth day of February, 

1834. 

JOSE RAFAEL de GALLEGOS. 

To The Secretary-General of the Government. 



124 



No. 14. 



Classification of the towns of Costa Rica in reference to home 
government and Treasnry matters. 

Tlie Vice-President acting as the Supreme Chief Executive 
Magistrate of the free State of Costa Rica. 

Whereas the Assembly has decreed and the Council sanc- 
tioned the following : 

" The Conetitntional Assembly of the free State of Costa 
Rica, desiring to make the transaction of Government business 
expeditious and efficient, and also to improve the organization 
of the Treasury, by appointing three high officers, who shall 
exercise superior authority, with functions equal to those of 
the sub-delegates of the Intendencia General, in their respective 
disti'icts, has decreed, and does hereby decree : — 

Article I. In order to facilitate the administration of the 
Government, in matters of Police, and the Treasury, three 
high officers shall be stationed, one at Cartago, another 
at Alajuela, and the third at the town of Guanacaste ; 
they shall have, in their respective districts, the same duties 
as the Political Chief had under the law of June 13, 1828 ; 
and they must have the qualilications required by the said 
law, which is hereby amended so as to be made applicable to 
them. 

■X- -Jf * -x- -x- •» *■ 

Article N\. The Departments or districts shall be named 
Eastern, Western, and Guanacaste : the first comprising the 
cities of San Jose and Cartago, the towns of Paraiso and Es- 
casii and the villages of Ciirridabat, Aserri, Union, Quircot, 
Tobosi, Coo, Orosi, Tucurrique, Terraba, Boruca and the val- 
leys of Tnrrialba and Matina ; the second the cities of Heredia 
and Alajuela, the town of Barba and the villages of Pacaca, the 
Aguacate Mine, Esparza and Puntarenas ; and the 3d the towns 



125 

OF GrUANAOASTE AND BaGACES, AND THE VILLAGES OE SaNTA 

Ceuz, Nicoya and Canas. 

Given in the city of Alajuela this 24th day of March, 1835. 
MANUEL AGUILAR, 

President. 
RAFAEL EEYES, 

Secretary. 
MANUEL ANTONIO BONILLA, 

Secretary. 

Hall of the Council, 

Alajuela, March 26, 1835. 
Let it pass to the Executive. 

JOSE JULIAN BLANCO, 

President. 
JOSE MARIA ALYARADO, 

Secretary. 
Therefore let it be executed. 
Alajuela, March 27th, 1835. 

MANUEL FERNANDEZ. 

To The Minister General. 



126 

No. 15. 

Guanncaste is declared to he one of the five judicial distHcts 
of Costa liica. 

Tlie Vice-President, acting as tlie Supreme Chief Executive 
Magistrate of the free State of Costa Rica, 

Whereas the Assembly has decreed and the Council sanc- 
tioned the following : 

■5f ^ "X- -^ -TT ^ 

Article VI. For the remainder of the year the five justices 
shall be judges of first instance for the five judicial districts in 
which the State is divided, namely : 1st, the District of Car- 
tage, witli the towns of Ten-aba, Boruca, Tucurrique, Orosi, 
Coo, Qnircot, Tobosi, Valley de Matina, Paraiso, and La 
Union ; 2d, the District of San Jose, with the towns of Cur- 
ridabat, Aserri, Escasu, and Pacaca ; 3d, the District of He- 
redia, with the town of Barba ; ith, the District of Alajuela, 
with the Aguacate mining lands ; and, 5th, the District of 

GUANAGASTE, WITH BaGACES, CaNAS, E"iCOYA, AND SaJSTTA CkUZ. 

J'o the Representative Council. 

Given at the city of Alajuela on March 23, 1835. 

MANUEL AGUILAR, 

President. 

RAFAEL REYES, 

Secretary. 

MANUEL ANTONIO BONILLA, 

Secretary. 

Hall of the Council, 

Alajuela, March 27, 1835. 
Let it pass to the Executive. 

JOSE JULIAN BLANCO, 

President. 

JOSE MARIA ALVARADO, 

Sec7'etary. 
Therefore let it be executed. 

Alajuela, March 27, 1835. 

MANUEL FERNANDEZ. 
To The Minister-General. 



127 



No. 16. 

The faithfulness of the District of Nicoya., and its services 
subsequent to its incorporation to Costa Rica^ are recognized 
and rewarded. 

The Supreme Chief Magistrate of the free State of Costa 
Kica, taking into consideration the services kendeked by the 
District of Nicoya, and the faithfulness with which it has 

DISTINGUISHED ITSELF EVER SINCE ITS ANNEXATION TO THIS StATE, 

and desiring to facilitate by every possible means the increase 
of its population, as well as its commerce, and secure for it the 
degree of progress to which it is entitled by the good character 
of its inhabitants, the fertility of its soil, and its advantageous 
topographic position, has been pleased to decree, and decrees 
as follows : 

Article I. An annual fair to last three days, to commence 
on December 8th of each year, is permitted to Guanacaste ; 
and also to Santa Cruz, to begin on Ascension day ; and also 
to the town of Nicoya, to begin on Candlemas day ; and also 
to the town of Bagaces, to begin on July 24:th ; and also to the 
town of Canas, to begin on December 25th. And the authori- 
ties of the said localities shall see, under their strictest respon- 
sibility, that public order and peace and public morality are 
not disturbed, and that the disturbers of public peace are duly 
punished according to law. 

Article II. The ground on which the said fairs are to be 
held, and the house to be used for the same, whether already 
built or to be built in the future, is hereby granted to the in- 
habitants of said towns in fee simple, the area of the ground 
being equal to a -^^ yard lot of national measure. 

Article III. The Government shall also see that the towns 
of the said Department are given possession of such grounds 
to be used as commons, as they are entitled to, and that by 
this means their own resources are increased, provided, how- 



128 

ever, that the formalities of the law applicable to the case are 
duly complied with. 

To the Representative Council. 

Given at the city of Heredia, on the 25th day of March, 

1836. 

MANUEL AGUILAE, 

President. 

MANUEL BONILLA, 

Secretay'y. 
FRANCISCO SAENZ, 

Proto Secretary. 

Hall of the Council, 

Heredia, April 8, 1836. 
Let it pass to the Executive. 

JUAN V. ESCALANTE, 

President. 
JOSE MARIA ECHAVARRIA, 

Sec7'etary. 
Therefore let it be executed. 
San Jose, April 9, 1836. 

BRAULIO CARRILLO. 
To The Ministek- General. 



129 



No. 17. 

The rank and title of City is giveri to the town of Guanacaste 
in recognition of the services rendered hy it to the State by 
resisting the invasion of Manuel Quijano. 

The Supreme Chief Magistrate of the free State of Costa 
Eica, 

Whereas the Assembly has decreed and the Council sanc- 
tioned what follows: 

The Constituent Assemblj'^ of the free State of Costa Rica 
considering — 1st. That the Department of Guanacaste has 
rendered an important service to the State in defending itself 
against the invaders of its territory under the leadership of 
Manuel Quijano. — 2d. That it is necessary for the State to 
show in some way its appreciation of the said service and of 
the esteem in which it holds the inhalntants of that district for 
the courage and enthusiasm shown hy them on that occasion, 
has been pleased to decree, and decrees as follows ; 

Article I. The rank and title of a City is granted to the 
town of Guanacaste. 

Article II. The inhabitants of the whole Department are 
hereby exempted for one j^ear from paying the tax known as 
" road tax." 

To the Representative Council. 

Given at the City of Heredia on August 25, 1836. 

MANUEL ANTONIO BONILLA, 

President. 
FRANCISCO SAENZ, 

Proto Secretary. 
9 



130 

Hall of the Council, 

Heredia, Se2)tember 2, 1836. 

Let it pass to the Executive, 

JOAQUIN FLOEES, 

President. 
JOS£ MAEIA ECHAYARKIA, 

Seci'etary. 
Therefore let it be executed. 
San Jose, September 3, 1836. 

BRAULIO CAERILLO. 

To The Ministek-General. 



131 

No. 18. 

Schedule for the election of dejmties to the Constituent Assem- 
bly of the /State, at the rate of one deputy for each 5,000 
smds, and fractions of that unit to the number of 3,000. 
The letter A. means the place where the parochial electors 
must meet, and the letter B. shows the p/lace where the dis- 
trict electors must meet. 



EliECTOES. 


Districts. 


Parochial Electors. 


District 
Electors. 


Deputies. 


Substitiites. 


Paraiso. 
Population, 3,825. 

Cartago. 
Population, 15,875. 


Paraiso. A. B. 3 
Matina, 1 
Orosi, 1 
Tucurrique, 1 
Boruca, 1 
Terraba. A. 2 


4 


1 





Cartago. A. B. 28 
Coo, 1 
Quircot, 1 
Tobosi, 1 
Union, 1 


10 


3 


1 


San Jose. 

Population, 20.262. 

Heredia. 
Population, 15,262. 


San Jose. A. B. 38 
Curridabat, 1 
Asseri, 1 


13 


4 


2 


Heredia. A. B. 27 
Barba, 3 


10 


3 


1 


1 Alajuela. 
Population, 10,151. 


Canas. A. 1 
Alajuela. A. B. with 

Aguacate, 16 
Bagaces, 1 
Esparza and Punta 

Arenas, 1 


6 


3 


1 


Escasii. 
Population, 3,513. 

Nicoya. 
Population, 5,846. 


Escasii. A. B. 5 
Pacaca, 2 


4 


1 





Guanacaste. A. B. 3 
Santa Cruz. A. 5 
Nicoya, 4 


4 


1 






Office of the Secretary of the Assembly, San Jose, July 
4 1838 

JUAN BONILLA, 

Secretary. 
EAFAEL EAMIEEZ, ' 
Secretary. 



132 

No. 19. 

The Constituent Assembly of Nicaragua of 1838 gives jjower 
to the Executive to enter into a treaty with the Envoy of 
Costa Rica. 

The Chief Magistrate of the State of Nicaragua, 
Wiiereas the Constituent Assembly has decreed as follows : 
The Constituent Assembly of the State of Nicaragua, desir- 
ing to streno'then friendship and alliance with the State of Costa 

Owl 

Rica, on the gi-ound tliat the present safety and future happi- 
ness of both States depends to a great extent on the accom- 
plishment of this desire, and considering that the Executive 
needs ample authoritj'- to deal with the Envoy accredited in 
this capital ; — in use of the ample powers which have been 
vested in it by the people, has been pleased to decree and 
decrees : 

Tlie Executive is hereby authorized to adjust with the Envoy 
of Costa Rica such treaties of friendship and alliance as may be 
deemed conducive to the good of both States, subject to the ap- 
proval of this Assembly! 

Let it be transmitted to the Executive for the purposes that 
it I.)e printed, published, and circulated. 
Given at Leon, on Nov^ember 8, 1838. 

BENITO ROSALEZ, 

President. 
SEBASTIAN SALINAS, 

Secretary. 
FAUSTO CHAMORRO, 

Secretary. 
Therefore let it be executed. 
Leon, December 1, 1838. 

JOSE NUKEZ. 
To The Seoeetary-Geneeal. 



■ This decree was issued wlien Don Francisco Maria Oreamuno, Costa 
Rican Envoy, presented himself to the Cabinet of Nicaragua for the purpose 
that that State should finally give up her claim to the District of Guanaeaste, 



133 



No. 20. 

Law enacted hy the Constituent Assembly of Nicaragua on 
Decetnber 21, 1838, to carry into effect Article II of the 
Constitution of the same year. 

The Chief Magistrate of the State of Nicaragua, 
Wiiereas the Constituent Assembly has decreed what fol- 
lows : 

The Constituent Assembly of the State of Nicaragua, desir- 
ing to establish and regulate the method of election of the Su- 
preme authorities of the State in conformity with the rules 
prescribed by the organic law, has been pleased to decree and 
decrees : 

Chapter I. 

Article I. The State is divided into four Departments, 
namely, East, West, North, and South. 

Article II. The Department of the East embraces three Dis- 
tricts, namely Granada, Masaya, Xinotepet. 

Article III. The Department of the West embraces two, 
namely Leon and Chinandega. 

Article IY. The Department of the North embraces two 
Districts, namely Segovia and Matagalpa. 

Article Y . The Department of the South shall em- 
brace ONLY ONE, namely RiVAS, UNTIL THE QUESTION PENDING 

between this Government and the Government of Costa 
Rica for the reincorporation of the District of Guana- 
caste IS settled. 

Article YI. The District of Granada consists of the city of 
the same name, the town of Acoyapa, and the villages of Boaco, 
Camoapa, Lustepet, Comalapa, Juigalpa, Lovago and Lovi- 
giiisca. 

Article YII. The District of Masaya consists of the city 
of this name and those of Managua and Tipitapa, and the 
towns of Nindiri and Mateare. 



134 

Article YIII. The District of Jinotepet consists of the 
villao-e of this name and those of San Jnan, Nandaimes, Santa 
Catarina, Ni([iiinoliouio, Masatepe, Diria, Diriomo, Diriaraba, 
Nandasmo, San Marcos, San Rafael and Santa Teresa. 

The District of Leon consists of the city of this name and 
the towns Subtiaba. Pueblo Nuevo, and Nagarote. 

Article X. The District of Chinandega consists of this 
town and those of Realejo and Yilla Nueva, and the villages 
of El Viejo, Chichigalpa, Guadalupe, Posoltega, Posolteguilla, 
Telica, Quczalquaque, Somotillo, El Sauce and Santa Rosa. 

Article XL The District of Segovia consists of the vil- 
lages of Somoto, Totogalpa, Ocotal, Mosonte, Macnelizo, 
Nueva Segovia, Jicaro, Jalapa, Telpaneca, Palacaguina, Ja- 
lagtiina, Pueblo Nuevo, Condega, San Juan de Leinay, Estile 
and La Trinidad. 

Article XIL The District of Matagalpa consists of the 
village of the same name and those of San Rafael, Jinotega, 
Sebaco, Metapa, Tierra Bona, San Dionisio, Esquipulas, Min- 
mui, and San Ramon. 

Article XIII. The District of Rivas consists of the city 
of the same name and the villages of San Gorge, Pueblo 
A^iejo, Buenos Ayres, Potosi, Obrage, Pueblo Nuevo, Tola, 
Ometepe and Moyogalpa. 

Article XIY. Each District above named shall elect one 
deputy, but the District of Leon and the District of Rivas 
shall elect two each. The number of the primary electors 
which corresponds to each town or village above named shall 
appear from the schedule, which is appended to this decree. 

Article XY. Those towns, where more than ten electors are 
to be chosen, shall be divided in as many cantons as are des- 
ignated in the schedules appended to this decree, and the limits 
of these cantons shall be fixed by the respective municipal au- 
thorities according to the basis of their population and the 
number of the electors to be chosen. The same municipal au- 
thorities shall also designate the place at each canton where 
the popular meetings must be held. 



135 



No. 21. 

Provisions of the Decree of Bases and Guarantees of March 
8, 184:1, in regard to Costa JRican Territory. 

Article I. 
Of the State. 

§ 1. The State consists of all its inhabitants whether native 
or naturalized. It is sovereign and independent both in its 
internal administration and its foreign relations. The sov- 
ereignty essentially resides in the whole of the State ; and 
no section thereof, whether large or small, nor any person ex- 
ercising the supreme power, shall assume the title of sovereign. 

§ 2. The territory of the State is comprised within 

THE following LIMITS : On THE WEST THE La FlOR RIVER, 
AND THE CONTINUATION OF THE LINE THEREOF, AND ALONG THE 
SHORE OF THE LaKE OF NICARAGUA AND THE SaN JuAN 
RIVER TO THE MOUTH OF THE LATTER ON THE ATLANTIC ; ON 
THE NORTH THE ATLANTIC OcEAN FROM THE MOUTH OF THE 

San Juan river to the Esoudo de Veragua ; on the 
east from the latter place to the Chiriqui river ; and on the 
south from the latter river and all along the coast of 
the Pacific Ocean to the La Flor River. 

§ 3. The territory of the State is divided into five Depart- 
ments, the capitals of which shall be, respectively, Cartago, San 
Jose, Heredia, Alajuela, and Guanacaste. The first will con- 
sist of all the towns between Matina and the El Fierro river ; 
the second will be comprised between the latter river and the 
Yirilla river, including the towns of Terraba and Boruca. 
The third department will be comprised between the Yirilla and 
the Segundo rivers. The fourth will be comprised between 
the Segundo and the Chomes rivers ; and the fifth will be 
comprised between the Chomes and the La Flor rivers. 
The Departments are subdivided into towns, and the towns 



136 

into wards and sections, bnt the titles so far obtained of cities 
and towns shall be preserved ; but in the future no such titles 
shall be granted, except for great services rendered to the State, 
When the increase of the population may demand another dis- 
tribution of the Departments, all new arrangements shall be 
based upon the rate of 30,000 inhabitants for each one. 



137 



No. 22. 

The Constituent Assembly of Costa Rica of 1842 declared 
that the Province of Ctianacaste is an integral part of the 
national territory and that it is incumbent upon the honor 
of the nation to repel the aggression attempted by Nicaragua. 

The Provisional Supreme Chief Magistrate of the State of 
Costa Rica, 

Whereas the Constituent Assembly has decreed what fol- 
lows : 

The Constituent Assembly of the State of Costa Eica^, upon 
consideration of the decree enacted by the Legislative As- 
sembly of the State of Nicaragua, dated May 24:th instant, 
giving authority to the Supreme Director of that State to 
actually annex to it the District of Guanacaste ; and consid- 
ering : 

1st. That by decree of the Federal Congress of December 
9, 1825, THE SAID Depaktment was incorporated into the 
TERRITORY of Costa Rica, until the demarcation of the States 
provided for by Article YII of the Constitution of the Repub- 
lic was accomplished. 

2d. That by virtue of the said decree the State took pos- 
session OF the said Department and administered the Grov- 
ernment thereof, with just title, and has retained it ever since 
AS AN INTEGRAL part of its territory. 

3d. That ever since the emancipation from the Spanish Gov- 
ernment, the local and municipal authorities of those towns and 
villages have always shown their decided desire that Guana- 
caste should BE annexed to the TiiRRiTORY OF CosTA RicA, re- 
peated applications having been made by them to that effect, 
as witnessed by the preliminary remarks of the aforesaid de- 
cree of December 9 th. 

dth. That subsequently to the disruption of the national 
representation in 1838, the people of that locality, through 



138 

their respective authoi-ities, solemnly Reiterated their de- 
cisiuN to continue united to Costa Rica. 

5th. That the reincorporation of that Department to 
Nicaragua, as is attempted, is an usurpation of the indispu- 
table right to possess it given by law to Costa Rica, and that 
in consequence it is incumbent upon the honor and the dut}'- 
of the State to preserve the integrity of its territory and 
the dignity of its name, repelling by all means the aggres- 
sion which is intended against it for the purpose of despoiling 
it of its property. 

By unaminous vote decrees : 

Article I. The Department of Gtuanacaste is an integral 

PART of the territory OF CoSTA RiCA. 

Article II. The Executive shall see by all means that the 
integrity of the State, its dignity and its rights shall be pre- 
served. 

Let it be communicated to the Executive for due execution 
and in order that it may be printed, published and circulated. 

Given at the City of San Jose on the 25th day of August, 
1842. 

JOSE FRANCISCO PERALTA, 

President. 
JOAQUIN B. CALYO, 

ISecretary. 
FELIX SANCHO, 

Secretary. 

Therefore let it be executed, circulated, and published. 
Government House, San Jose, August 27, 1842. 

FRANCISCO MORAZAN. 
To General Jose Miguel Sara via. 



139 



No. 23. 

Reveiixie posts are established on the Sarapiqui and La Jtlor 

rivers. 

The President of the State of Costa Rica, 

Upon inf oi'mation that foreign goods, as well as those articles 
the traffic of which the Government has reserved for itself, are 
frequently smuggled into this State through the northern coast, 
the Sarapiqui river, and the western frontier ; and considering 
that it is the duty of the Executive to prevent this trade from be- 
ing carried on, to the detriment both of lawful commerce and 
the public Treasury ; in use of the faculties vested in him by sec- 
tions 22 and 26 of Article 110 of the Constitution, and by the 
law of December 31, 1845, decrees : 

Akticlp: I. A revenue militarj'- post • is established on the 
northern coast, on the banks of the Sarapiqci river; and 
another of the same kind upon the banks of the La Floe 
RIVER, ^ in the western part of the State ; and both of them 
will be stationed at the places which the Government may 
designate. 

Article II. Each one of these posts will be in charge of a 
commandant, subject to the orders of the Intendente-General ; 
and this commander shall have under him such troops as ac- 
cording to the circumstances may be determined. 

Article III. It will be the duty of those posts to seize the 
merchandise and goods unlawfully introduced into the State, 
and also to prevent all persons from going out of the State 
without exhibiting their proper passports ; and after six months 
subsequent to the date of this decree it shall be also their duty 
to take to the interior any person who does not come provided 
with that document. 

Article IV. The said posts shall be entitled to that share 



' This was the boundary of Costa Rica after the annexation of Guanacaste. 



140 

of the articles seized which is allowed by law in recompense 
of this service. 

Given at the city of San Jose, on May 10, 1847. 

JOSE MARIA CASTRO. 

To Senor Juan de Dios Zespedes, 
Chief of Bureau^ in charge pro tern. 

of the Departments of War and Treasury. 



141 



No. 24. 

Ihe Congress of Costa Rica approves the Executive Decree 
which estahlishes military revenue posts on the Sarapiqtii 
river and the western frontier of Nicaragua. 

Department of the Treasury, War, and Navy. 

No. 266. — Circular. 

Government House, 
San Jose, June 16, 184Y. 
The Constitntional Congress communicated to me on the 
11th instant what follows : 

" The Constitutional Congress having taken into considera- 
tion the communication made by the Executive on the 27th of 
May ultimo, asking for the approval of Decree No. 1, 
dated on the 10th of the same month, by which two military 
revenue posts are established on the Nicaraguan frontier, and 
on the banks of the Sarapiqui rwer ; and taking into consid- 
eration the provisions of § 26 of Article 110 of the funda- 
mental law, and the report of the proper committee, has been 
pleased, at a meeting held yesterday, to approve said Decree. 
And I have the honor to transmit it to you by order of the 
President of this State, for your information and the proper 
effect, hoping that you will be pleased to acknowledge the 
receipt of this communication, and to accept the consideration 
with which I subscribe myself your obedient servant. 
By the JVlinistcr : 

JUAN DE DIGS ZESPEDEZ, 

Chief of Bureau. 



142 



No. 25. 



Tlie road lohich leads to the La Flor inver, tlte frontier of 
the States of Costa Rica and Nicaragua^ is ordered to he 
repaiyed. 

Juan Rafael Mora, President of the Republic of Costa Rica : 

Whereas the Constitutional Congress has decreed as fol- 
lows : 

The Constitutional Congress of the Republic of Costa Rica, 
taking into consideration that the tax of one-half real (6|- cents), 
levied at the toll-gate upon each head of cattle passing through 
there, was created by the law of August 7, 1827, to be used 
in part for the opening and repair of the road leading to the 
frontiers of the State of Nicaragua, which object has not been 
realized ; and also considering that the residents and land-own- 
ers of the Province of Guanacaste, upon whom the said tax 
was especially laid, demand that this money be used for the 
aforesaid purposes ; and considering that it is of the highest 
importance to the commerce and industry of the country, that 
the means of communication between this Republic and the 
neighboring State should be facilitated, has been pleased to 
decree, and decrees : 

Article I. Out of the amount realized from the tax imposed 
upon cattle by the law of August 7, 1847, there shall be 
placed at the disposition of the Governor of the Province of 
Guanacaste the sum of $500, to be used in the opening of the 
road which leads from the Barranca to the La Flor river, ^ 
the said tax being devoted in the future to the repair and im- 
provement of the said road. 

To the Executive Power. 



^ Boundary of the two States at the date of this decree. 



143 

Given at the Palace of the Supreme Powers in San Jos^, on 
the 11th day of July, 1851. 

FRANCISCO MARIA OREAMUNO, 

President. 
MODESTO GUEYARA, 

Secretary. 
MIGUEL MORA, 

Secretary. 

Therefore let it be executed. 

National Palace, San Jose, July 28, 1851. 

JUAN RAFAEL MORA. 

MANUEL JOSE CARAZO. 

To The Secretary of War and oe the Treasury. 



144 



No. 26. 



Bases for the form.ation of a Company, named the Sarapiqui 
Company, for the opening of a road from San Jose to the 
Sarapiqui river, and for the navigation of the said river, 
in order that the exportations of Costa Rica may he made 
through the Sa7i Juan river. 

Juan Rafael Mora, President of the Republic of Costa Rica : 

Takiiiii' into consideration : 

1st, that the prosperity of the country being based upon ag- 
riculture and commerce, it is of the higliest importance to im- 
prove those two great fountains of wealth in order tliat they 
may improve day by day and reach perfection. 

2d. That one of the best means of reaching the end indi- 
cated is to lay out convenient and short roads leading to the 
ports on both oceans. 

3(1. That at present the Republic owns a very good road on 
the Pacific that can be improved ; and that there is none on the 
side of the Atlantic, although such a one has been demanded for 
a long time by the urgent interest of the Costa Rican people. 

4th. That several schemes, surveys, and examinations have 
been undertaken for the last 30 years at different times by 
several citizens of the nation in ordei' to accomplish such a de- 
sired purpose. 

5tli. Tliat subsequently to the said attempts the discovery 
was made of the means of building a road giving easy access 
to the Sarapiqui river, which is navigable, and empties into 
the San Juan river, which in its turn empties into the 
Northern Sea, where there is a good port known and fre- 
quented by all commercial nations. 

6th. That tlie Government, yielding to the general clamor, 
and taking advantage of that discovery, gave the proper au- 
thority, for a formal survey, and for the building of the koad, 
and appropriated for that purpose a portion of the revenue de- 



145 

voted to roads; and that the said formal survey proved to be 
successful, and also that the work began, but could not be com- 
pleted, for want of means, 

Tth. That if the necessity of such an easy way of communi- 
cation to the Atlantic has heretofore been imperious, now it is 
still more urgent, owing to the increase of the population and 
industry of the country, as shown by statistics. 

8th. And, finally, that the frequency of relations of this 
country with foreign States, is conducive to immense benefit 
for its wealth and civilization, and anticipates a great and flat- 
tering future for the Republic, I have been pleased to decree, 
and do hereby decree, as follows : 

Akticlb I. Due authorit}?^ is given for the organization in 
this country of a Costa Rican Company, to be known as the 
Sarapiqui Company, consisting of twenty responsible members, 
and having a capital of $60,000, divided into shares of |3,000 
for each partner ; the said capital to be increased hereafter, if 
necessary. 

Article II. This company shall have for its object the build- 
ing of a substantial carriage road, within the period of five 
years, to be counted from January 1, 1852, starting from this 
city, and ending on the wharf of the Sarapiqui river. The 
width of this road shall be 40 yards, whenever the topographic 
conditions of the localitj- permits it ; and it shall be provided 
with such bridges and other appurtenances as are necessary for 
its use and preservation. 

Akticlb III. Notwithstanding the provisions of the preced- 
ing Article, the company shall begin by building, as soon as 
possible, a good road for mules, which shall be finished within 
eighteen months, to be counted from the same day, January 1, 
1852. 

Article IX. It is hereby granted in favor of the said Com- 
pany that it shall collect during the period of twenty-five 
years toll tax of two reals (25 cents) for each one hundred- 
weight of all domestic merchandise that may be carried over 
the whole of the said road, or a part thereof, and four reals 
10 



146 

(50 cents) for eacli one hundredweight of foreign merchan- 
dise, of whatever nature, imported through it. 

Akticle XVIII. The Company shall have the right for the 
period of five years of establishing, if suitable to its interests, 
STEAM NAVIGATION ON THE Sarapiqui RIVER, either by itself 
or by agreement with other companies ; and, in either event, 
the Goveriunent grants to it, for tne whole period of the con- 
tract for the road, the right to collect a navigation duty of one 
real (12^ cents) on each one hundredweight of merchandise 
exported, and two reals (25 cents) for each one hundredweight 
of merchandise imported. 

Given at the National Palace, at San Jose, on October 27, 
1851. 

JUAN KAFAEL MORA. 

JOAQUIN BERNARDO CALVO, 

Secretary of the Interior. 



14:7 



No. 27. 



Costa Rica prohibits the Navigation of the San Carlos river, 
an affiuent of the San Juan, and j^rescriles penalties for the 
transgressors. 

Juan Eafael Mora, President of the Eepnblic of Costa Eica : 

Whereas I have been informed that foreign merchandise, and 
also those articles, the trade of which the Government has re- 
served for itself, are frequently smuggled through the San Car- 
los river, therefore I do hereby decree — 

Article 1. Navigation on the San Carlos river is hereby 
PROHIBITED, until Said river fe declared, with the proper for- 
malities, to be a port of the Eepublic. 

Article 2. Every boat or vessel which may be found nati- 
GATiNG ON THE San Carlos RIVER shall be scizcd and forfeited, 
together with everything on board, whether it is foreign mer- 
chandise, or not ; and the owner, or master, and the sailors 
thereof, shall be arrested and placed at the disposal of the judge 
of the Treasury, to be tried according to law. 

Article 3. A perambulating revenue post subordinate to 
the Eio Grande Custom House, and consisting of one corporal 
and three revenue guards, is hereby established, and it shall 
be its duty to watch over the roads leading to the San Carlos 
river, and guard the banks of the same. 

Article 4. Such foreign merchandise, or articles whose 
trade belongs to the Government, as may be seized by this 
revenue post, shall be delivered, together with the prisoner, or 
prisoners, to the Collector of the Custom House above-named, 
and said collector shall distribute the captured property, 
according to the laws and decrees in force. 

Given at the Palace of the Government in San Jose, on No- 
vember 14, 1853. 

JUAN EAFAEL MOEA. 

MANUEL JOSE CAEAZO, 

Secretary of the Treasury. 



148 

No. 28. 

Costa li'ica grants to the firm of KirMand c6 Geering the 
privilege of .steam navigation on the Sajpod 7'iver, and of 
estahlishing a route of transit from the Bolahos Bay to the 
Lake of Nicaragua ; the grantees heing authorized to use 
the waters of the Lake and. of the San Juan and Colorado 
rivers, in so far as they helong to Costa Rica. 

Juan Rafael Moka, the President of the Kepublic of Costa 
Rica: 
Whereas the Constitutional Congress has decreed as follows : 
The Constitutional Congress of the Republic of Costa Rica, 
upon examination of the contract entered into on February 
25th instant, between the Government of the Republic and 
Messrs. William P. Kirkland, William B. Geering, and their 
associates for the purpose of establishing a line of transit be- 
tween THE POKT OF LaS SaLINAS DE BoLANOS TO THE SaPOA 

RIVER AND Port of San Juan, has been pleased to decree, and 
decrees : 

Article 1. The contract of February 25th instant, between 
the Republic and William P. Kirkland, William B. Geering, 
and their associates is hereby approved with the amendments 
set forth in the following article : 

Article IL The amendments spoken of in the foregoing 
Article are the following : 

1st. The Article of the contract will read as follows : 

" The Government of Costa Rica grants to Messrs. William 
P. Kirkland, William B. Geering, and their associates, the ex- 
clusive privilege of steam navigation on the Sapoa river 
for the purpose of establishing a line of transit from the Gdef 
of Las Salinas de Bolanos to the Lake of Nicaragua, 
for the period of twenty years, to be counted from the date of 
this decree ; and the said Messrs. William P. Kirkland, Wil- 
liam B. Geering, and their associates, are hereby declared to 
form a corporation, or partnership, or company, which shall be 
known from this date by the name of Transit Company of 



149 

Costa Kica. In order to carry this undertaking into effect 
the said Company shall have the power to use freely 

THE WATERS OF THE LaKE OF NICARAGUA^ AND THE SaN 

Juan and Colorado rivers in the part thereof which be- 
longs TO SAID EePUBLIC OF CoSTA RlCA." 

2d. The new road shall not impede the free travel of the 
other Republics of Central America which has been permitted 
by this Republic. 

3d. Article 10 of the above mentioned contract shall be 
understood as follows: The employees and laborers of the 
Company, whilst they remain sucli, shall be free from all civil 
and military service; but in urgent cases they shall render 
such services as the Grovernment may require. 

4th. An additional article shall be inserted in the above- 
named contract, in the following terms : 

" If within six months from this date the Company should 
not have commenced the works which the enterprise requires, 
and if the transit should not be established within eighteen 
months, the said contract shall become null and of no effect, 
and the Republic shall be at full liberty to dispose, as it may 
deem convenient, of the favors granted to said Company." 

To the Executive Power. 

Given in the Hall Sessions in San Jose, the 22d day of 

May, 1854. 

FRANCISCO MARIA OREAMUNO, 

President. 
MODESTO GUEYARA, 

Secretary. 
JESUS JIMENEZ, 

Secretary. 
Therefore let it be executed. 
National Palace, San Jose, May 23, 1854. 
JUAN RAFAEL MORA. 
JOAQUIN BERNARDO CALVO, 

Secretary of the Interior. 

1 It will be rembered that Costa Rica before the treaty of 1858 was a 
border State of the Lake of Nicaragua. 



160 



No. 29. 

The Government of Costa Bica accejjts the ajyology made by 
the Government of Nicaragua for having tresjyassed with 
its forces -upon the dividing line between the two States, that 
is, the L'l Flor river, houndary of the Costa Rican Province 
of Guanacaste. 

San Jose, Sejjtemher 3, 1855. 
2\) the Minister of Foreign Relations of the Supreme Govern- 
ment of the Republic of Ni,caragua. 
Sir : I received yesterday at 12 M. your estimable note, 
No. 13, in reply to the one which I had the honor to address 
to you on July 23d last. 

It would not be difficult for me to answer to every one of your 
able arguments, or prove satisfactorily, that my Government, 
taking into consideration the information at that time received, 
justly felt itself wounded in what is most sacred to a free 
people, which is national honor and sovereignty, and was right 
in demanding from your Government a public apology and the 
punishment of the invaders. But the statement made through 
you by your Government conveys such a full, frank, and sin- 
cere explanation of all the facts which alarmed us, as to prove 
that there has not been anj^ desire or intention of offending 
the people and Government of Costa Rica. 

In reading the statements therein made by your enlightened 
Government, under your authorized signaturcj that neither the 
Executive of Nicaragua, nor its subordinate authorities, ever 
had any intention to cause the slightest displeasure to the 
Government and people of Costa Rica, with which it desires 
to cultivate relations of fraternity and harmony, I cannot but 
be persuaded of the sincerity with which your Government, 
wisely laying aside the delicate question of principle, deemed 
it preferable to justify itself by claiming to have acted upon 
sentiments of fraternity and common interest, and by urging 
its acts to have been accomplished with good intention under 



151 

the pressure of circumstances, and not looking at Costa Rica as 
a foreign nation, but as a friend and a sister. 

And above all, my Government being anxious that it may 
never be supposed that Costa Rica, taking advantage of the 
domestic troubles which embarrass your unfortunate country, 
and of the civil war and the epidemics which horribly devour 
its children, wishes to increase its misfortunes and render its 
unfortunate situation graver, by insisting upon her demands, 
I have now the great pleasure to answer to you that my Gov- 
ernment, setting aside said demands, and seeing in the two 
nations nothing else than members of the same family, which 
must keep cordially united to each other in fraternal relations, 
declares itself satisfied with the very attentive, conciliatory, 
and well-supported explanation, which 3'ou have given on be- 
half of your Government. 

I have been deeply impressed by that paragraph of your 
note in which you feelingly say : ''The foreign enemy, Sir, is 
threatening us ; the danger is imminent ; and hefore that 
danger, it is necessary for us all to repress any complaint, no 
matter how just, desist from family quarrels, and set aside all 
questions." 

These are beautiful and well-expressed sentiments, the fre- 
quent repetition of which renders it, however, difficult to under- 
stand, how it is that they are not carried into practice in the 
terrible struggle which afflicts Nicaragua. 

Yow know well that the constant current of our thought 
has run in that direction ; that in the midst of our peace and 
prosperity we, Costa Ricans, never forget that we all are Cen- 
tral-Americans ; but I shall not fail to say that your sympathetic 
and correct remarks have powerfully impressed the noble mind 
of his Excellency the President and hastened the oblivion of 
the events which caused on him, such a deep impression. The 
President trusts that in the future there will never be any 
disagreement between the two countries, nor will anything 
interrupt the happy harmony which to-day more than ever 
must unite, not only the two Republics, but all the Central- 
American States. 



152 

I sliall not end this communication without assuring yon 
that each and all the acts done by order of my Government, 
and of which von make a detailed enumeration, have been 
prompted only l)y the full conviction of our rights; but, as there 
seems to be some doubt about its legality on the part of your 
Government, we are ready to adjust the matters peacefully 
as is proper among sister nations. 

Now, more than on any other occasion, it is gratifying to 
me to offer to you my respects as your most obedient servant 
and friend, 

J. BERNARDO CALVO. 

["Boletin Oficial, " 2cl year, No. 126. San Jose, September, 12, 1885]. 



153 



No. 30. 



Congratulation of the people of Leon to the Costa Rican Army 
upon the seizure of the steamers and its control of the river 
and Lake. 

To the Costa Rican Soldiers : 

The people of Leon open their arms to you in token of their 
eternal gratitude for your heroic efforts in saving Nicaragua 
and the whole of Central America from %^andalism, and in liber, 
ating them from the clutches of William Walker, the worse of 
tyrants, who had no other object in view than war, bloodshed, 
destruction, and absolute ruin of every town and city through 
which he might pass, and who, in his fury, never respects even 
the Temples of God. 

Providence has placed in your hands, as can be seen, the sword 
which has to exterminate that infernal dragon, whenever he pre- 
sents himself. You shall conquer him ; you shall drive him 
from the soil of your forefathers, overwhelmed with confusion, 
and recognizing that Central America is not an uncivilized 
country as he has said, and that it prefers death to degradation 
and infamy. 

We congratulate you, and congratulate ourselves, for the bril- 
liant triumph achieved by yon in reconquering the Lake and 
the San Juan river, and in causing the enemy to sustain such im- 
mense losses; and you may rest assured that we on our part 
shall co-operate with pleasure in all your efforts, since we are 
certain that God guides your steps and leads you in recogni- 
tion of your holy intentions (santas intenciones) through the 
path of glory. 

Leon, January 10th, 1857. 

THE PEOPLE OF LEOK 

[From the " Boletin Oficial " of Leon, transcribed in the " Boletin Ofi- 
cial" of Costa Rica, No. 265, February 11th, 1857]. 



154: 



No. 31. 



Seizure of the steamers of the San Juan river and the Lahe of 
Nicaragua. — Official news from the Army. — Another tri- 
umph. — Go ahead! — The war nearly at an end. 

The information received to-day from the San Juan river 
and transmitted by Gen. Don Jose Joaquin Mora is very sat- 
isfactory. 

On December 28th our troops seized the two steamers at 
the Rapids of El Toro and Machuca, captured the fortress of 
Castillo Yiejo, which is on the river bank, and also took pos- 
session of the steamer Virgen, which was well armed and 
loaded with cannons, rifles, gunpowder, swords, &c., &c., to 
the value of more than ten thousand dollars. 

The steamer Yirgen had been Walker's most powerful aux- 
iliar3^ With it he ran over the waters of the river and Lake, 
and, safely and without opposition, made repeated attacks 
wherever he pleased, taking advantage of the helpless condi- 
tion of the allies, who, lacking vessels, saw themselves com- 
pelled to operate on land by fatiguing and protracted marches. 

The enemy does not count any more upon the powerful as- 
sistance on which it has relied to escape so many attacks, and 
move rapidly from one place to another according to his 
wishes. 

Our troops have now seven steamers on the Lake and on 
the San Juan river. 

The important strategic points of La Trinidad and Castillo 
Yiejo on the river are well guarded, their fortifications have 
been improved, their garrisons have been reinforced, and every- 
thing will be done immediately to preserve them in a perfect 
condition of safety and defence. 

General Mora, preceded by a gallant division, was march- 
ing to attack the San Carlos fortress on the Lake shore. 

The only steamer left to the bandit Walker, which is the one 



155 

named "San Carlos," serionsl damaged by Central- American 
shot, must by this time be in our hands. 

Our army, therefore, is in full possession of the Lake, and 
can freely communicate with General Cafias and the command- 
ing officers of the allied armies at Granada, Masaya, and 
neighboring places. 

Such successful operations have not required the sacrifice of 
any lives. Courage, boldness, and the surprises given the 
enemies secured the triumph. 

The allied armies, united and well organized, were at the 
end of last week preparing themselves to march against 
Walker. 

Desertion was increasing among the filibusters ; and hunger 
as well as fever demoralizes them and compels them to remain 
in deadly inaction. 

God visibly protects our cause, and will grant us very soon a 
complete victory. 

[Extracts from the oflScial report of General Mora]. 



166 



No. 32. 

Proclamation of the President of Costa Pica upon the seiz- 
ure of the steamers and the control of the San Juan river 
and the Lake of Nicaragua. 

Official. 

The President of the Pepuhlic to the Peoj)le of Costa Pica. 

Fellow-Citizens: The great artery of filibnsterism has 
been severed forever. The sword of Costa E-ica has cut it. 

In twenty days of campaign, through deserts full of vipers, 
through thick forests, through terrible marshes and swamps, 
through large rivers, our soldiers have marched with the step 
of conquerors, and taken possession of La Trinidad, Castillo 
Viejo, the San Carlos fortress, eight steamers and some other 
boats, ten pieces of cannon, three mortars, five hundred rifles, 
a great number of swords, revolvers, and all kinds of ammuni- 
tion of war, and more than one hundred enemies whom we 
have generously released. Now, upon the waters of the San 
Juan river and of the Great Lake, the rays of the sun do 
not shine upon any other flag than that of Costa Rica. 

All has been conquered without one shot, without a drop of 
blood, by intrepidity and surprise. And what were our means 
of action ? The fleet with which we attacked the steamers of 
our strong enemies were trunks of trees scarcely hewed out, or 
badly bound with vines. The muskets which we had in our 
hands were rusty, and could hardly be used on account of 
their continual exposure to rain. We had no provisions. 
We had nothing. But we had courage, self-denial, patriot- 
ism, that union of mind peculiar to Costa Rica, and the 
decision to conquer or to die. And Providence has blessed 
our soldiers, and conducted them from victory to victory. 

We are masters of the river and the Great Lake, and are in 
communication with our allies, while Walker, who is confined 
to Rivas and its neighboring territory, is going to be attacked 



1S7 

and conquered and annihilated, together with the city, if such 
fenecesLy. I have offered pardon to all those who blmdly 
follow r.n! if they should abandon his cause. We shall know 
how to conquer and forgive. 

But will this be the end ! No, fellow-eitizens Tlie work 
commenced must be terminated. It is necessary for us not to 
be subject any more to the danger that a new Walker come 
to disturb our peace, and struggle to reduce us to slavery. It 
is necessary that so many obstacles overcome, so many sacri- 
fices made, shall not become fruitless. They have to be con- 
tinued. Let us, therefore, raise upon that very river, and with 
onr own hands, a powerful barrier which may now and forever 
stop that torrent of usurpation. Nothing would have been 
gained by only obtaining a precarious peace Let „s conqi^r 
a solid, lasting peace, honorable, and prodncive of frnltful 
results to Costa Eica, Nicaragua, and the Central American 

States 

Cosia Eica.s, I rely npor. yon for all of this. With your 
assistance and Divine protection, there will be nothing to stop 
me Let us bless Providence which shelters us, and et us 
ma^ch united, at the cry of Long live Costa Eica! with un- 
disturbed faith and perseverance towards the future which is 
before us. j^^^ -^ MORA. 

San Jose, January 11, 1857. 



158 



No. 33. 



Opinion of the Government of Guatemala in regard to the 
action of Costa liica daring the war against Walker, and 
especially in the affair of the seizure of the steamers. 

Costa Rica has again gallantly undertaken a campaign 
against the invaders of Nicaragua. She understood the im- 
portance of occupying certain places on the San Juan river to 
prevent the adventurers from being reinforced by way of the 
Nortliern Sea, and her troops have succeeded in accomplishing 
this purpose by seizing the steamei's which Walker had on the 
river, occupying the San Carlos fortress, which is upon the 
very same entrance to the Lake, and by taking possession also, 
as is said, of one of the two steamers that the enemy had on the 
Lake. * * * 

It is certainly sad, and causes the soul of any person who is 
friendly to the independence of the country to grieve, that while 
Costa Rica is making new and strenuous efforts to save Nic- 
aragua, and while the other Central American Republics are 
preparing themselves to send troops to replace the losses sus- 
tained in their ranks, there seems to be nothing, even the im- 
minence of danger, capable of terminating the unhappy dis- 
cord which has brought unfortunate Nicaragua to the condi- 
tion in which she now linds herself. . 
["Gacela de Guatemala," January 22, 1857.] 



159 



No. 34. 

What happeried in Nicaragua after the seizure of the steamers 
hy the Costa Rican forces. 

San Jose, February 4, 1857. 

ll^EWS FROM THE ArMY. 
[Extracts from official despatches and documents]. 

After twenty days of silence and anxiety, we have at last 
received the news from the army which we published in the 
extra editions of the " Boletin " issued on the 2d and 3d 
instant. 

What is the reason of such great calm, of such an incompre- 
hensible inaction, before an enemy who, although conquered, 
is so active, astute, and bold ? 

We do not believe in concealing the truth, but, on the con- 
trary, in proclaiming it aloud, and making it serve us as an ex- 
ample, to avoid disunion and internal discord, which inevitably 
produce the ruin of all nations. Nicaragua is unfortunately 
the living, bloody, smoky, example, which Costa Eica must 
have before her eyes to confirm her in her love of peace, and 
of her modest and industrious existence, free from the accursed 
rancor of parties,, and to make her preserve, above all things, 
the most vigorous union among her children. 

The field of the Central American allies has been about to 
offer the image of another "Agramante's field." Partisan 
spirit, lamentable preferences, repeated disagreements, and lastly 
a fatal division, caused the armies, already decimated by sick- 
ness and war, to be disbanded. AYhen Gen. Canas arrived ^ 
there, he did all that he could to re-establish indispensable unity 
among the leaders and the troops ; and considering the state of 
irritation, and the almost irreconcilable differences which he 



' Gen. Don Jose Maria Canas, a Costa Rican officer, who afterwards gave 
his name to the treaty of 1858. 



160 

found there, what he succeeded iu accoraplisliing cannot be 
deemed small. 

The triumphs obtained by Costa Rica on the San Juan river 
caused a reanimation of the spirits of Nicaragua, the concen- 
tration of her thoughts, the oblivion of her petty differences, 
and the prevalence of the noble idea of saving the country 
from traitorous and foreign enemies. 

As soon as General Mora^ readied the fortress of San 
Carlos, he devoted himself with characteristic activity, as well 
as decision and tact, to accomplish a powerful harmonization 
of all conflicting elements, and by calling together the Central 
American leaders, and writing to the Generals of the armies, 
and to every one who could exercise any influence in that direc- 
tion, he prepared the way to give the coup de grace to the 
usurpers. 

All of this has fortunately succeeded. All the leaders have 
responded with patriotism and dignity to the appeal of the 
Costa Rican Generals, who, being exempted from partisan 
spirit, have no other feeling than the desire to fulfil their duty 
towards their common country, and to fortify the Central 
American independence by expelling from the Central Ameri- 
can soil the last one of its enemies. 

Under such circumstances nothing exists now which pre- 
vents military operations from being carried on ; and it may 
be that, at the time of writing this, a terrible end has been 
reached l)y the enemy to the benefit and prosperity of Central 
America. 



^ Don Jose Joaquin Mora, a brother of Don Juan Rafael Mora, President 
of Custa Rica. 



161 



No. 35, 



What, in 1857, was thought in Nicaragva in regard to the 
blow inflicted hy Costa Rica upon Walker on the San Juan 
river and the Lake of Nicaragua. 

[From the "Boletin Oficial" of Leon.l 
The Yanguaed of Centkal Amekica. 

Three hundred years ago a clever Minister of the English 
Government, placing his finger upon the map of the New- 
World, recently discovered, pointed at the Isthmus of Nicara- 
gua as the great door through which Europe should place her- 
self in rapid communication with China, Japan, and the Indian 
Archipelago, At the end of last century a Spanish Minis- 
ter saw in the same Isthmus the proper place for the opening 
of an interoceanic canal ; and at the beginning of the present 
century a scientific commission of the Spanish Government 
made the proper surveys. Lately, on September 22, 1849, and 
August 19, 1851, a passage from San Juan del Sur, the Lake 
and the river of San Juan del Norte, until the port of the 
same name on the Atlantic was successfully made ; and the 
door was thrown open through which our independence can be 
threatened at any moment, as it has been now threatened, with 
the knowledge and acquiescence of the nation which seems to 
show the greatest interest for the non-alienation of the said 
transit. The Republic of Costa Rica, surrounded by the 
waters and territory of Nicaragua on her northern side, from 
east to west, finds herself much more in contact with the said 
line than all the other States, and it is for this reason that she 
is called by nature to be the sentry and the " Vanguard of 
Central America." 

Costa Rica, indeed, has understood very well her own mis- 
sion in the present struggle against the filibusters ; she was the 
first to take the field on April 11 last, and defeated the enem3^, 
rendering it incapable to follow the rapid march which it 
11 



162 

intended. She could then measure the strength of the]enemy, 
and, casting; her inquiring look upon the battle-tield, she 
saw through the smoke of gunpowder and the noise of the 
struggle, that the vital point of Walker laid on the extremity 
of the transit line, as the strength of Sampson was in his hair. 
At once, and without hesitating one single moment, she left 
Rivas to engage in new strategic operations which she car- 
ried on with gi-eat success by marching her victorious armies 
from the San Carlos river to Punta de Castilla in the port 
of San Juan del Norte, and from Castillo Yiejo to the fort and 
Lake of Nicaragua, depriving filibusters of their steamers, their 
riiles, their cannons, their ammunition of war, and closing the 
door through which they could escape or receive reinforce- 
ments. All of this was done while the allied forces, abandon- 
ing Rivas to the enemy, compelled the invaders to concentrate 
themselves in a small place without any possibility to pay at- 
tention to the movements of that formidable vanguard. 

Costa Rica, which scarcely has a population of 100,000 in- 
habitants, has put on the field more than 5,000 men. She has 
opened her treasures, free of cost, to all those who, whether 
through need or deceit, followed Walker. She has fitted out 
national men-of-war and chartered others which will very soon 
efficiently blockade the southern port ; and in this way she has 
raised so high the national flag that it can be seen from every 
distance, and show that Costa Rica is indeed the Vanguard of 
Central America. 

G.J. 



163 



No. 36. 



The public opinion of Nicaragua in regard to Costa Rica in 
l^hl .—Nicaragua.— The United States of Costa Rica and 
Nicaragua. 

This woiild be the name of the Republic formed by the 
union of the two countries, and this is the destiny to which 
they are called by their past, present, and future conditions. 

If the States of Guatemala, Salvador, and Honduras were, 
during the colonial rule, three entities actnally different from 
each other, Costa Eica and Nicaragua were considered as only 
one Province, notwithstanding their nominal separation. 

There was not between them an absolute independence. 
Each had a Governor, but one of these governors was a sub- 
delegate of the other. There was only one political chief, and 
both Territories constituted but one diocese. The Costa Rican 
people got from Nicaragua their wives, their learning, and 
their fortune; and their children, Nicaraguans by nature, re- 
turned to Costa Rica to recognize the land of their parents 
and strengthen still more the bonds of consanguinity, wealth, 
and intelligence which connected them to each other. At 
present both Republics need union as a means to preserve their 
independence, dangerously compromised by the impetuous tor- 
rent of the immense commercial movement of the whole world, 
carried from one ocean to the other through their respective 
territories. 

Union alone can make them strong enough to oppose this 
inevitable movement. Only a condition of union in which all 
their interests are founded may render them respectable, and 
only in this way they will be able to cultivate the science of 
foreign politics with advantages that cannot be found under a 
separate system. 



lu 



No. 37. 



Gratuitous grant oj lands along the course of the Sarapiqui 
river down to its conjiuence with the San Jvan river, for 
agricultural purposes. 

Rafael G. Escalante, 

Vice-President of the BepuUic of Costa Bica, acting 
as Supreme Chief Executive Magistrate of the same : 

Moved bv tlie desire of favoring the poor people of Costa 
Rica by granting theui gratuitously such tracts of lauds as are 
capable of giving support to their families, and having in view 
at the same time the advisability of promoting and facilitating 
foreign immigration by making grants of the lands more fer- 
tile and better situated for commerce, I do hereby decree : 

Article 1. A strip of vacant land 500 yards wide is appro- 
priated on the TWO banks of the Sarapiqui river, and all 

ALONG its course UNTIL ITS CONFLUENCE WITH THE SaN JuAN 

river, for the exclusive purpose of being given to poor Costa 
Ricans and to the industrious people of any nationality who 
may be willing to settle there and cultivate the land under the 
rules established by this decree. 

Article 2. Each settler shall be given a square area em- 
bracing live manzanas, or 50,000 square yards, with a river 
front of 100 yards and a depth of 500 ; and between one piece 
of property and the other, a street 20 yards wide shall be left, 
in order to facilitate the access to the other vacant grounds 
beyond the limits of this strip. 

Article 3. All those who shall settle within two years 
from this date shall enjoy the favors herein granted ; but those 
who sball not cultivate their lauds within five years, also to be 
counted from this date, shall forfeit their right in the land. 

Article 4. The grantee who sliall have complied with the 
conditions of the foregoing Article, besides enjoying the favors 
aforesaid, shall be entitled to an addittional square area, equal 



165 

in extent to the one cultivated by him, in order that he may 
use it as he deems best ; but it shall be located in the rear of 
the cultivated lot. 

Article 5. If the settler should be willing to engnge him- 
self, in addition to the purposes spoken of in the preceding 
article, in cultivating cocoa, and shall have raised a cocoa 
plantation within the five years spoken of in Article 3, he shall 
be entitled to the ownership of the ground which he has de- 
voted to that cultivation, provided that it is distant at least 
one thousand yards from the banks of the Sarapiqui river. 

Article 6. All foreigners who shall desire to avail* them- 
selves of the opportunities of the present decree may either 
directly apply to the Judge of the Treasury or send his applica- 
tion through the Commandant of Sarapiqui, setting forth his in- 
tention of becoming a Costa Rican citizen, and asking to be 
given possession of the land which he must first cultivate. 
The Judge of the Treasury will direct the Commandant of 
Sarapiqui to give the possession asked for, and will enter into 
the proper register, which the said judge shall keep, the name, 
sex, age, profession or trade, condition, and nationality of the 
settler. 

Article 1. If the settler is a Costa Rican citizen he shall 
also tile before the Judge of the Treasury a certificate of the 
Governor of the Province where he lives, showing that this 
decree is applicable to him on account of his poverty, and the 
said judge shall direct upon inspection of the said certificate 
that the Commandant of Sarapiqui should give him possession 
of the area marked by law, the proper register being previously 
made as aforesaid. 

Article 8. As soon as the Commandant of Sarapiqui gives 
the settler the possession of the land which he intends to culti- 
vate and which was selected by him, he shall issue a certificate 
witnessing the fact and clearly designating the location of the 
area to which it refers. This certificate shall be sufiicient title 
for the settler for the purpose of asking both the survey and the 
ownership of the land to which he may be entitled ; but it shall 



166 

be of no use to him if he has not complied with the con- 
ditions above establislied within the time provided for. 

Article 9. After the expiration of the 5 years prescribed by 
this deci-ee, or before if the conditions have been fnlfiled, the 
settlers shall apply to the Judge of the Treasury, setting forth 
the favoi-s whieh he has d'eserved, and asking for a title of 
ownership. 

Article 10. The Judge of the Treasury, upon examination 
of three witnesses testifying that the petitioner has complied 
with the required conditions, shall declare him entitled to the 
favor or favors herein granted, and shall transmit the record 
of the case to the Government in order that the patent or title 
shall be issued. 

Article 11. Both in the court of the Treasury, and in the 
office of the Commandant of Sarapiqui, all the fees to be charged 
in relation to these cases shall be reduced one-half. And the 
certificates and testimony received in support thereof, in rela- 
tion to the said matter, shall be written on unstamped paper. 

Given at the National Palace at San Jose on April 23, 1858. 
EAFAEL G. ESCALANTE. 
JOSE MAKIA CANAS, 

Secretary of the Treasury. 



167 



No. 38. 



Provisions of the Mcaraguan Constitution of Avgust 19, 
1858, in regard to limits and the division of the National 
territory. 

In the presence of God. 

We, the representatives of the State, fully and legally au- 
thorized by our constituents to reform the Constitution of No- 
vember 12, 1858, decree and sanction the following Political 
Constitution : 

Chapter I. 
Of the Republic. 

Akticle 1. The Republic of Nicaragua is the same that was 
anciently called Province, and after the independence State 
of Nicaragua. Its territory is bounded on the east and north- 
east by the Sea of the Antilles; on the north and north- 
west by the State of Honduras ; on the west and south by the 
Pacific Ocean ; and on the southeast by the Republic of Costa 
Rica. The laws upok special limits form a part of the 
Constitution.^ 

Article 3. The territory shall be divided for the different 
purposes of public administration into the departments, dis- 
tricts, and sections which the Constitution and laws shall pro- 
vide for. 2 



»A few months before, the treaty of limits between Nicaragua and 
Costa Rica had been signed, ratified, exchanged, and approved, and this 
is the law evidently alluded to in this part of the new Constitution, since 
Nicaragua has no other law or treaty on limits. 

■^That law of territorial division was enacted by the same Constituent 
Assembly, and is Document No. 39 of this Appendix. In said territorial 
division the ancient district of Nicoya, was not, nor could it be, mentioned. 



168 

Given in the Hull of Sessions of the Constituent Assembly 
in Munaguiv, the 19th day of August of the year of our Lord, 
1858, and the 38th of our Independence. 

HERMENEGILDO ZEPEDA, 
Deputy for the Uiistrict of Leon, President. 
ANTOlsIO FALLA, 
Deputy for the District of Rlvas^Vice- President. 
FELIX DE LA LLANA, 

Deputy for the District of Leon. 
CLETO MAYORGA, 

Deputy for the District of Leon. 
SANTIAGO FRADO, 
Deputy for the District of Chinandega. 

MARIANO RAMIREZ, 
Deputy for the District of Chinandega. 
HIPOLITO GUTIERREZ, 
Deputy for the District of JSueva Segovia. 
PABLO CHAMORRO, 
Deputy for the District of Matagalpa. 

NARCISO ESPINOSA, 
Deputy for the District of Matagalpa. 
ISIDORO LOPEZ, 
Dep)uty for the District of Masaya. 

FRANCISCO JIMENEZ, 
Deputy for the District of Granada. 

JOSE L. CESAR, 
Deputy for the District of Jinotepe. 
J. MIGUEL CARDENAS,' 
Deputy for the District of Llivas. 
E. CARAZO, 

Depiuty for the District of Rivas. 
J. ARGtJELLO, 
Deputy for the District of Rivas. 



169 

JOSE A. MEJIA, 

Deputy for the District of Jinotepe. 
J. MAEIANO BOLANOS, 

Deputy for the District of Masaya.^ 

Managua, August 19, 1858. 
Let it be executed. 

Given under m.y hand and the seal of the Republic and 
countersigned by the Minister of Government. 

TOMAS MARTINEZ. 
ROSALIO OORTEZ, 

Mi?iister of Government. 



^The districts represented by the Constituent Assembly were Leon, 
Rivas, Cliinandega, Nueva Segovia, Matagalpa, Masaya, Granada, and Jino- 
tepe. Nicoya was separated from Nicaragua since 1824. 



170 



No. 39. 



Schedule of the Judicial Divisio?i of the territory of the Re- 
jjuhlic of Nicaragua. 



Depaktment of Granada. 



Granada 
Jinotepe 
Santa Teresa 
La Paz 
El Rosario 
Nandaimes 



DistHct of Granada. 



Diriomo 

Diria 

San Juan 

Santa Catarina 

Niquinohomo 

Diriamba 



District of Masaya. 



Masaya 




Masatepe 


Nindiri 




San Marcos 


Nandasmo 




San Rafael 




District of Managua. 


Managua 




Mateare 


Tipitapa 








Department of Choutales. 




District of Acoyapa. 


Acoyapa 




Boaco 


Lobago 




San Lorenzo 


Santo Tom 


as 


Tenstepe 


Juigalpa 




San Jose 


Comalapa 




San Miguelito 



171 

District of San Carlos. 

San Carlos. 

District of Castillo Viejo. 

Castillo Viejo. 

District of San Juan del Norte. 

^ San Juan del l^orte. 
Department of Chinandega. 
District of Chinandega. 



Chinandega 

Viejo 

Realejo 

Chichigalpa 

Guadalupe 




Posaltega 
Posaltegtlilla 
Somotillo 
Villa Nueva 




District of Corinto. 




Corinto. 




Department of Leon. 




District of Leon. 


Leon 

San Felipe 

Subtiaba 

Camoapa 




Telica 

Quesalguaque 

Souse 




District of La Libertad. 




Libei 


ftad. 



172 



Department of Nueva Segovia 



District of Nueva Segovia. 



Somotogrande 


Dipilto 


Ocotal 


Limay 


Masonte 


Estill 


Cindad Antigua 


Palacagtiina 


Jalapa 


Jalagnina 


Jicaro 


Nagarote 


Telpaneca 


Pueblo*Nuevo 


Condega 


Trinidad 


Totogalpa 


Pueblo Nnevo 


Macualizo 


San Buenaventura 


Santa Maria 


Santo Rosa 



Department of Matagalpa. 
District of Matagalpa. 



Matagalpa 
Jinotega 
San Kafael 
La Concordia 
Metopa 
Sebace 



Tierra Bona 
Esquipulas 
Muimese 
San Dionisio 
San Ramon 



Department of Rivas. 
District of Rivas. 



Rivas 

San Gorge 
Buenos Ayree 
Potosi 
Obrage 



Ometepe 
Moyogalpa 
Pineda 
La Yirgen 
Tortuira 



173 



No: 40. 



A road is ordered to he opened from the Capital to the 
Sarapigui river. 

Juan Rafael Mora, 

President of the Republic of Costa Rica. 

Whereas the Congress has decreed the following : 

The Constitutional Congress of the Republic of Costa Rica, 
having seen and examined the contract made on July 8th 
of the present year between the Supreme Government and the 
Messrs. Canty foe the purpose of building a koad from this 
Capital to the Sarapiqui river, has been pleased to decree, 
and decrees : 

Sole Article. Let the 12 articles contained in the above- 
named contract be approved, as well as the additional article 
proposed by the Supreme Executive Power on July 9th of the 
present year, inserted in the same. 

To the Supreme Executive Power. 

Given in the Hall of Sessions, in San Jose, the 23d day of 

September, 1858. 

RAFAEL G. ESCALANTE, 

President. 
JESUS JIMENEZ, 

Secretary. 
MANUEL CASTRO, 

Secretary. 

Therefore let it be executed. 

National Palace, San Jose, September 27, 1858. 

JUAN RAFAEL MORA. 

JUAN BERNARDO CALYO, 
Minister of the Interior and the Treasury. 



174 

No. 41. 

Concessions made ly Costa Rica for steam navigation upon 
the Sarapiqui and San Carlos rivers, a?id for carrijing the 
mail from the wharf on the Sarapiqui river to San Juan 
del Norte and vice versa. 

Juan Rafael Mora, 

President of the BepuUic of Costa Rica. 

Whereas the Congress has decreed the following : 

The Constitutional Congress of the Republic of Costa Rica 
havino- considered the contract for steam navigation on the 
" Sarapiqui and San Carlos rivers^' made by the Supreme 
Government with the Messrs. Canty on July 8 instant, decrees : 

Sole Article. The contract for steam navigation upon the 
Sarapiqui and San Carlos rivers made by the Supreme Gov- 
ernment with the Messrs. Canty is approved, with the excep- 
tion of xlrticles VI and YII, which shall read in said contract 
as follows : 

"Article VI. The Government also grants to the Messrs. 
Canty a monthly subsidy of |150, in compensation for their 
services in carrying and bringing the mail, twice a month, be- 
tween the Sarapiqui wharf and San Juan del Norte." 

" Article VII. Lastly, the Government grants to the Messrs. 
Canty exemption from taxes on their steamboats, and the 
protection of the same by the authorities of all ports, as far 
as is possible." 

To the Supreme Executive power. 

Given in the Hall of Sessions, in San Jose, September 23, 

1858. 

RAFAEL G. ESCALANTE, 

President. 
JESUS JIMENEZ, 

Secretary. 
Therefore let it be executed. 
National Palace, San Jose, September 27, 1858. 
JUAN RAFAEL MORA. 
JOAQUIN BERNARDO CALVO, 
Minister of the Interior^ Treasury, and War. 



175 



No. 42. 

Costa Rica is recognized as a party to the canal grant made 

to Mr. Belly. 
Juan Rafael Mora, 

President of the Republic of Costa Rica. 

Whereas the Constitutional Congress of the Republic hav- 
ing taken into consideration the 28 articles comprised in the In- 
teroceanic Convention, celebrated by the Governments of the 
Republics of Costa Rica and Nicaragua, with Messrs. Felix 
Belly and P. M. Millaud &, Company, of Paris, and considering 
at the same time the additional article to said convention, has 
decreed, as follows: 

Article 1. Thelnteroceanic Convention celebrated between 
the Governments of the Republics of Costa Rica and Nicara- 
gua and Messrs. Felix Belly and P. M. Millaud & Company, 
of Paris, is approved in all its parts ; but with the understand- 
ing that the responsibility spoken of in Article 10 shall only 
apply when the foreign attack or invasion md.y be lawful. 

Article 2. Tbe present decree shall only have effect after 
the Congress of the Republic of Nicaragua shall have ratified 
the Convention, of which reference is made above. 

To the Supreme Executive Power. 

Given in the Hall of Sessions, in San Jose, on the 16th day 
of December, 1858. 

RAFAEL G. ESCALANTE, 

President. 
JESUS JIMENEZ, 

Secretary. 
MANUEL CASTRO, 

Secretary. 

Therefore let it be executed. 

National Palace, San Jose, December 16, 1858. 

JUAN RAFAEL MORA. 
NAZARIO TOLEDO, 
Minister of Foreign Relations. 



176 



No. 43. 

A tax for the henefit of the pvhlie mstruciion of the Province 
of Guanacasie is levied upon the exportation of wood shipped 
oil the Pacific coast hetioeen Cape Blanco and the Gulf of 
Salinas. 

Juan Rafael Mora, 

President of the Republic of Costa Rica : 
AV^itli the view of enlarging the export commerce with the 

products OF THE IMMENSE FOKESTS WHICH THE REPUBLIC POS- 
SESSES. IN THE WESTEEN PART OF HER TERRITORY, and of provid- 
ing' by this means the Province of Moracia^ with funds for 
public instruction, I do hereby decree : 

Article 1. The exportation of crude lumber, of any quality 
or size, is permitted for the term of five years on any part of 
the Pacific coast between Cape Blanco and the Gulf of Salinas, 
without any other duties than those imposed by the present 
decree. 

Article 2. For each log of wood which, by virtue of the 
preceding Article, will be shipped from any place on the coast 
situated in the jurisdiction of the Province of Moracia, the 
sum of two reals (25 cents) shall' be collected, whatever the 
dimension of the log may l)e ; and the payment shall be 
made previously to the shipping. 

§ 1. The amount of this tax shall be turned over to the fund 
for public instruction in the Province above named. 

§ 2. The Governor of the said Province shall make the col- 
lection of this tax by commissioners, whom he shall appoint 
for that purpose. 

Article 3. Whoever shall ship, or attempt to ship, timber 
from the places aforesaid, without previously paying the duty 
prescribed by Article 2d, shall be bound ipso facto to pay 
double. 



' Guanacaste. 



177 

Article 4. The duty of five cents per cubic foot shall con- 
tinue to be paid for the timber felled in the littoral of the Gulf 
of Puntarenas, if the thickness or horizontal section of the log 
exceeds 12 square inches. 

Article 5. All previous provisions relative to the exporta- 
tion of timber are hereby repealed. 

Given at the National Palace of San Jose on January 13, 
1859. 

JUAN KAFAEL MOEA. 
JOSt MAEIA CANAS, 
Secretary of the Treasury. 
12 



178 



No 44. 

New ?uiles enncied in regard to timber witldn the Zone of the 
Sarapiqid and other rivers of the Reprd)lic on the Atlantic 
side. 

Juan Rafael Mora, 

President of the Repahbic of Costa Rica : 
Whereas I have been informed that timber is cut down with- 
out permission of the Government on the banks of the Sara- 

PIQUi AND ELSEWHERE IN THE TERRITORY OF THE REPUBLIC ON THE 

Atlantic side, and that in spite of the measures taken by the 
{Frontier authorities, ^ the said unlawful trade continues, I do 
hereby decree : 

Article 1. On and after the 1st day of April next it shall 
be unlawful for any one to cut timber in the territory of the 
Republic on the Atlantic side, for exportation purposes, with- 
out permission of the Executive. 

^ 1. In consequence of this provision any one who wishes to 
engage in this trade, in that section of the country, shall apply 
to the Executive for a permit, and shall specify in his applica- 
tion "the place where he wishes to cut. 

§ 2. Before granting the said permit the interested party 
shall give secm'ity for the payment of the duties hereafter to 
be provided for. 

Article 2. Each log, of whatever thickness, shall be charged 
the duty of one-half real (6^ cents) for each yard. 

Article 3. The Military Commandant of Punta de 
Castilla,^ either by himself, or by means of commissioners, 
shall attend to the collection of this duty, andj^shall keep for 
tliat purpose such books as may be required to show the 
amount derived from that source. 

Article 4. Whoever, in pursuance of the provisions of this 



'The new frontier established by the treaty of April 15, 1858- 

- Eastern extremity of the border line established by the treaty of 1858. 



179 

decree, shall engage in the cutting of timber in the places 
aforesaid, shall be bound, before shipping it, to file before the 
Commandant of Funta db Castilla a correct bill of lading 
specifying all the pieces which are to be exported ; and, in 
case that no such document is filed, or that, if filed, it does 
not agree with the cargo, he shall pa}' double duty, and shall 
forfeit the right to continue cutting timber. 

Article 5. The timber trade which heretofore has been 
carried on on the hanks of the rivers'^ rimning through the 
territory of the Republic^ being unlawful, such timber as may 
be now cut shall not be exported unless with permission of the 
Government and upon the payment of the duties herein estab- 
lished. 

Akticle 6. The Commandants of Punta de Castilla and 
Sarapiqui shall see that this decree is faithfully complied with, 
and if, as has already happened, their authority is not recognized 
they shall open an investigation to show that the provisions of 
this decree have been violated, and shall submit the record 
thereof with their report to this Department, giving also notice 
thereof to the General Commandant. 

Article 7. As soon as the General Commandant receives 
positive information that timber is cut down on the Atlantic 
side in violation of the present decree, he shall send the 

PROPER FORCES TO ARREST THE VIOLATORS OF THE LAW OF WHAT- 
EVER NATIONALITY THEY MAY BE 2, in Order that they may be 
tried and punished in this Capital according to law. And every 
settlement or establishment which the violators may have 
made or erected for the purpose aforesaid, together with tools 
and all other appurtenances, shall be forfeited. 

Article 8. As soon as the works for the canal through the 
Nicaraguan Isthmus are undertaken the effect of this decree 
shall be suspended. ^ 

^ The Sarapiqui, San Carlos, Rio Frio, and other rivers (treaty of 1858). 
^ Includine; the neighbor Nicaragua. 

^ This was for the purpose of favoring the enterprise of the canal which 
always has had the protection of Costa Rica. 



180 

Given at the National Palace of San Jose on March 9, 

1R59. 

JUAN RAFAEL MORA. 

JOSE MARIA CASAS, 

Secretary of the Treasury. 



181 



No. 45. 

Costa Rica approves the contract of 'interoceamc canal entered 
into with Mr. Felix Belly, of Paris. 

Juan Rafael Mora, 

President of the RepvMic of Costa Rica : 
Whereas the Constitutional Congress has decreed as follows : 
The Constitutional Congress of the Republic of Costa Rica, 
upon examination of the amendments made to the interna- 
tional convention relative to the construction of a Mari- 
time Interoceanic Canal, through the San Juan river and 
Lake of Nicaragua, entered into between the Republics 
OF Nicaragua and Costa Rica and Messrs. Felix Belly & 
Co., of Paris, decrees : 

Sole Article. All the amendments made by the Chambers 
of the Republic of Nicaragua to the Convention above named 
are liereby approved. 

To the Supreme Executive. 

Given at the Hall of Sessions at San Jose, on Jane 22, 1859. 
RAFAEL G. ESCALANTE, 

President. 
MANUEL CASTRO, 



JACINTO TREJOS, 



Secretary. 
Secretary. 



Therefore let it be executed. 

National Palace, San Jose, June 27, 1849. 

JUAN RAFAEL MORA. 
By sickness of the Hon. Secretary of Foreign Relations., 
SALVADOR GONZALEZ, 

Assistant Secretary. 



182 



No. 46. 

Territorial Division of the Repuhlic of Costa Rica for Elec- 
toral Purposes, after the treaty of limits of April 15, 
1858. 

The Senate and the House of Representatives of Costa Rica 
iu Congress assembled, considering that the elections of the 
supreme officers, and also of the municipal authorities and the 
juries for press trials, are to be made in accordance with the 
provisions of the Constitution, have enacted the following law : 

Title I. — Sole Chapter. 

Of the Territorial Division. 

Article 1. Tlie territory of the Republic is divided for 
electoral purposes into five provinces and one district (co- 
marca), which, in their turn, shall be divided into cantons, and 
the cantons into districts. 

Article 2. The provinces shall be named San Jose, Car- 
tago, Heredia, Alajuela and Guanaoaste. 

■H- * -s ^ * * * 

Article 7. The Province of Guanaoaste consists of the 
city of Liberia (its capital), and of the towns of Nicoya, 
Santa Cruz, Bagaces, and Caiias. It is divided into four can- 
tons, which sliall have the same names as the cities and towns 
above-mentioned, which shall be the chief towns of the can- 
tons ; and the tif th town above-named shall be included in the 
canton of which tlie other city immediately preceding it in 
order is the capital. Each canton shall have two districts. 



183 



No. 4T. 

The Custom Authorities of Costa Rica exercising jurisdiction 
on the frontier established hy the treaty 0/1858. 

eTosE Maria Montealegre, 

President of the Reprd)lic of Costa Rica : 

Taking into consideration that the revenue interests, both of 
this Republic and of Nicaragua, demand that some rules should 
be enacted for the importation and exportation of merchandise 
through the land frontier between both countries, ^ and as 
long as a decision completely satisfying this necessity, and 
made by agreement with the authorities of that Repablic is 
not enacted, I do hereby decree : 

Article 1. Whoever shall introduce merchandise in the 
territory of Costa Rica through the land boundary with Nic- 
aragua shall be bound to obtain a permit to do so from the 
revenue port established on the border line of both Repub_ 
Lies. This permit shall be filed before the Receiver of Public 
Moneys of Liberia,^ in order that he may make the liquidation of 
the duties to be paid therefor according to law. 

Article 2. The goods and merchandise introduced in viola- 
tion of the provisions of the foregoing Article shall be forfeited. 

Article 3. The revenue post of the frontier shall send a 
duplicate of the permits issued by it to the Governor of the 
Province, and the latter shall be bound on his own personal 
responsibility to transmit those duplicates to the office of the 
Principal Accountant or Comptroller in order that they may be 
used to prove the accounts of the Receiver. 

Article 4. Whoever shall export, through the same way^ 
merchandise destined for the Republic of Nicaragua, shall 
apply for the proper permit to the Receiver of Public Moneys 
at Liberia ; and the revenue post of the frontier shall detain 



' The new frontief established by the treaty of 1858. 
"^ Capital of the Proviace of Guanacaste. 



184: 

all merchandise intended to be carried through there, without 
said permit, until it is duly obtained and filed. The Receiver 
sliall l)e l)ound to send a copy of the said permits to the Gov- 
ernor of the Province in order that the latter may transmit 
them to the principal Treasury authorities in the bordering 
department of the Ilepul)lic of Nicaragua. 

Article 5. The revenue post of the frontier shall keep 
a book wherein all the permits issued by it for the interior of 
the country shall be copied accurately. And this book shall 
be sent at the end of every fiscal year to the ofiice of the 
Comptroller. Another book shall be kept in the same way, 
wherein all the permits issued by the Receiver of Liberia shall 
be entered, together with a list of the merchandise exported 
to Nicaragua ; and tiiis shall be sent monthly to the Governor 
of the Province of Guanacaste for his information. 

Given at the National Palace of San Jose on the 26th day 
of February, 1861. 

JOSE MARIA MONTE ALEGRE. 
VICENTE AGUILAR, 

Secretary of the Treasury. 



185 

No. 48. 

Concessions made hy Gosta Rica for Steam Navigation on the 
Sarapiqui, San Carlos, and other rivers tributaries of 
the San Juan river, and the Lake of Nicaragua, and for 
the huilding of a road from the interior of Costa Rica 
to the Sarapiqai river, or to any other river affluent to the 
San Juan. 

The Senate and House of Eepresentatives of Costa Eica in 
Congress assembled decree : 

Aktiole 1. The Executive shall inform Messrs. Thomas 
Horace H. and George Canty thnt the contracts made on July 
8, 1858, for Steam Navigation on the Saeapiqui, San Carlos, 

AND other rivers TRIBUTARIES OF THE S AN JuAN RIVER, AND THE 

Lake of Nicaragua, and for the building of a road from 
THIS Capital to the Sarapiqui river, or to ant other 
emptying into the port of San J uan del Norte, have been 
terminated. 

* Article 2. In case that the company spoken of by Article 
1 of the contract for the road, formed within the time stipu- 
lated in Article 9 of the same, extended for six months by de- 
cree of the provisional Government, and under the conditions es- 
tablished by Article 1 above named, is still in existence, it shall 
have the power, in spite of the declaration of the preceding 
Article, to use tlie right granted to it by Article 12 of the 
said contract; and in this case the Executive shall have the 
duty to secure as soon as possible the proper decision. 

To the House of Representatives. 

Given at the Hall of Sessions at the National Palace, San 

Jose, July 31, 1861. 

R. RAMIREZ, 

President. 
JUAN GONZALEZ, 

Secretary. 
R. FERNANDEZ, 

Secretary. 



186 

Let it pass to the Executive. 

Hall of the House of Representatives in the National Palace, 
San Jose, AugMistS, 1861. 

JULIAN VOLIO, 

President. 
DEMETRIO IGLESIAS, 

Secretary. 
ANDRES SANCHEZ, 

Secretary. 

National Palace, 
San Jose, August 12, 1861. 
Let it he executed. 

JOSE MARIA MONTEALEGRE. 
FRANCISCO MONTE ALEGRE, 
Secretary of the Treasury, War, Roads and the Navy. 



187 



No. 49. 



Municipal territorial division of Costa Rica subsequent to the 
treaty of limits o/1858. 

The Senate and House of Representatives of Costa Rica in 
Congress assembled, do hereby enact the following municipal 
ordinance : 

Session 1st. 

Territorial Division. 

Aetiole 1. The territory of the Republic is divided, for the 
purposes of municipal administration, into five provinces and 
one district (comarca), the provinces to be subdivided into 
cantons, and the cantons into districts. 

Article 2. The provinces shall be named San Jose, Car- 
tago, Heredia, Alajuela, and Guanacaste. The comarca shall 
be named Punta Arenas. 

* ***** 

Article 7. The Province of Guanacaste consists of the 
city of Liberia, its capital, and the towns of Nicoya, Santa 
Cruz, Bagaces, and Canas. It shall be divided into four can- 
tons, which shall have the same names as the city and towns 
above mentioned,-which shall be their capitals ; but the two 
last-named towns shall form only one canton. Each canton 
shall be divided into two districts. 



188 



No. 50. 

Grant vvtiJe in favor of Don Jose Antonio Chamorro for the 
huildhig of <> road to the hanks of the San Juan river. 

The Senate and House of Representatives of Costa Rica 
in Congress assembled decree : 

Article 1. Permission is hereby given to Don Jose Antonio 
Chamorro, as recpiested by him, to make through the public 
lands a road to establish communication between the interior 
of the Republic and the hinks of the San Juan river, through' 

which cattle proceeding from Nicaragua may be introduced. 

******* 

To the Senate. 

Given at the Hall of Sessions, National Palace, San Jose, 

November 16, 1863. 

FRANCISCO M. IGLESIAS, 

President. 
M. J. ZAMORA, 

Secretary. 
S. LARA, 

Secretary. 
To the Executive Power, 
Hall of the Senate, National Palace, San Jose, December 

o 1 ftA3 

JOSE M. MONTEALEGRE, 

President. 
JOAQUIN BERNARDO CALYO, 

Sec7'etary. 
R. FERNANDEZ, 

Secretary. 
Let it be executed. 

JESUS JIMENEZ. 
FRANCISCO ECHEVARRIA, 

Secretary of the Treasury. 



1S9 



No. 51. 



Measures taken in regard to the Guatitso Indians, occupying 
the plains of the same name in the Rio Frio river in the 
territorial jurisdiction of the Province of Alajuela, south 
of the Lake of Nicaragua and the San Jxian river. 

The Senate and House of Representatives of the Republic 
of Costa Rica in Congress assembled decree : 

Article 1. The Executive is hereby authorized to appoint 
those Caciques of Talamanca whom it may choose to select, to 
be political chiefs of their districts, dependent upon the Gov- 
ernor of the Province of Cartago, and to cause the said Ca- 
ciques to be paid out of the public Treasury in remuneration of 
their services, a salary not less than $10 nor more than $20 
monthly. 

Akticle 2. The Executive is also authorized by this decree to 
appoint a capable and well intentioned person, who with the 
title of Director of the Talamanca reservation should advise 
and assist the Caciques in the administration of the Government 
of the people under them, and suggest such measures as 
may be conducive to their more speedy civilization, and also 
furnish such reports and information as the Supreme Govern- 
ment or the Governor of Cartago may ask of him. 

Article 3. Aslong as the condition of those people does 
not permit the administration of the Government thereof to 
be conducted on the same footing as in the rest of the Repub- 
lic, the Caciques political chiefs shall rule over them, and shall 
administer justice according to their usages and customs, but 
subject to the orders of this Government ; but it shall never be 
lawful for them to impose capital punishment, nor the penalty 
of exile from the territory of the Republic. As to the penalties 
of imprisonment or confinement at hard labor, they shall have 
no power to impose them, except for a term not exceeding one 
year. 

Article 4. An appeal can be taken from the decisions of 



190 

the Caciques political chiefs to the Governor of Cartago, and 
from the decisions of the latter to the President of the Ke- 
puhlic ; and it shall be their duty, respectively, either to affirm 
or repeal their decision against which the appeal was taken, 
according to principles of justice, and upon the proper investi- 
gation. 

Article 5. "Whenever a person wdio is not a native of the 
tribes of Talainanca should be guilty of any grave offense within 
that jurisdiction, tiie case shall be properly investigated by the 
Director, and tlie record of the investigation shall be sent, to- 
gether with the accused party, to the Judge for criminal matters 
of the city of Cartago, where the prisoner shall be tried accord- 
ing to law. The same proceedings shall be resorted to when 
the culprit is an Indian, and the offense committed by him is a 
capital one, or is punished bylaw with expulsion from the terri- 
tory of the Republic or with the penalties of imprisonment 
at hard labor for more than one year. 

Article 6. The Executive is hereby authorized to pay a 
salary which shall not exceed $60 per month to the C urates 
whom the Bishop of the Diocese should send to those localities, 
and these Curates, once there, shall not collect fees of any kind. 

Article 7. Tne Executive is likewise authorized to fix the 
jurisdictional limits of each political chief, to take all measures 
conducive to tlie better administration of the Government of 
tliose people, and to appoint such officer as it may deem to be 
strictl}' necessary for the service there, and fix their salaries. 

Article 8. The Execntive shall have the power to use the 
same means as above explained, to xindertake the civilization 
of the Indians called. Guatiiso Indians, found in the Prov- 
ince of Alajuela, and dejjendent upon the Governor of the 
saone Province. 

To the House of Representatives. 

Given at the Hall of Sessions, National Palace, 8an Jose, 
June 18, 1867. 

J. M. MONTEALEGRE, 

President. 



191 

J. RAFAEL MATA, 

Secretary. ■ 
RAMON FERNANDEZ, 

Secretary. 

To the Executive Power. 

Hall of the Chamber of Representatives, National Palace, 

San Jose, July 24, 1867. 

MANUEL A. BONILLA, 

President. 
ANDRES SAINZ, 

Secretary. 
JUAN M. CARAZO, 

Secretary. 

National Palace, San Jose, July 25, 1867. 
Let it be executed. 

JOSE MARIA CASTRO. 

A. ESQUIVEL, 

Secretary of the Interior. 



192 



No. 52. 



Dr. Don Epaminondus Uribe, Commissio7%er of the Govern- 
ment of Costa J ilea, visits the San Juan and San Carlos 
rivers, and suggests some measures for the foundation of 
two Costa Itican towns — one at Punta ,de Castilla and an 
other at the confluence of the San Carlos and the Ptnas 
Blancas rivers. 

In compliance with the promise made by us in onr former 
issue, we shall here publish the report made by Don E. Uribe, 
which we copy from the " Gaceta Oficial " of Costa Eica of 
July 2. The importance of that report, as far as we are con- 
cerned, is to be found especially in what refers to the town of 
San Juan and the navigability of the Colorado river : 

" Alajuela, June 1, 1868. 

" To the Hon. Secretary of the Interior. 

" Sir : In compliance with the orders that the President of 
the Kepublic was pleased to give rae to go to San Juan del 
NoETE to examine the condition of its port, of the road 
which now is being built from San Ramon to San Carlos.^ of 
the San Carlos river and of the Colorado river and its bar, in 
order to determine whether the said rivers admit of steam 
navigation, and whether the bar is accessible, and also to find 
out the proper place to hxxWdi a town on the former of the 
above-said rivers, and to see how far a steamboat could ascend 
that stream, and, finally, to get information whether the au- 
thorities of HJicaragua had allowed or abetted the expeditions 
which some months ago were made by individuals of that Re^ 
pid)lic against the Gttatuso hidians ;^ I shall report to you, 
for the information of the Chief Executive Magistrate, the 
result of my labors. 



' Uncivilized Indians who inhabit the plains of the Rio Frio river, south 
of the Lake of Nicaragua and of the San Juan river. 



193 

1 left this city on April 4 ultimo, and, passing through 
the towns of Grecia and San Ramon, I reached San Carlos in 
fifteen and a half hours (ordinary rate of speed), although the 
portion of the road between this place and about three leagues 
beyond San Ramon is the only one which can be called a car- 
riage road. From there I continued my travel through a very 
narrow path, until the 6th instant ; and I did not encounter 
any other difficulties than the Catarata Hill and the Cataract 
and San Lorenzo rivers, the latter easily admitting of being 
bridged. As to the hill itself, its difficulties can be lessened 
by levelling its grade six per cent., and giving to the road the 
proper windings. 

I embarked at the place which is called El Muelle (the 
wharf), three leagues beyond Pefias Blancas, and although my 
boat was very heavily laden and it drew two feet of water and 
the river was very shallow, and we went very slow in order to 
observe everything well, I reached tlie San Juan river in 
twelve hours, without having found in the whole voyage one 
single place where the water was less than three feet deep, nor 
any natural obstacle of any kind. I found, however, and this 
only at certain places, several poles around which sand- had 
accumulated and caused different channels to be formed ; but 
this evil will be very easy to remedy, in my judgment, by re- 
moving the said poles, and allowing the water to run from one 
bank to the other according to the natural inclination of the 
river bed, and then 1 think that the depth of the water will 
not be less than four feet. 

As to the San Juan river, I did not find any difficulty in the 
navigation thereof between the place at which the San Car- 
los river empties into it and where it branches oif to form the 
Colorado river ; but between the latter place and its mouth 
the boat ran aground several times on account of the shallow- 
ness occasioned by the summer season, which, according to the 
information given by the inhabitants of those localities, had 
never been so severe before, and also because the Colorado river 
takes from the San Juan three-quarters of its water. 
13 



194 

The Port of San Juan is not at present in good condition 
because the transit company, owing to the difficulties existing 
between it and the Government of Nicaragua in regard to a 
certain contract entered into by them, has completely stopped 
its work. Nevertheless, I think that this obstacle is not in- 
superable as far as the interests of the commerce of Costa 
Rica are concerned, because the only thing to be done in order 
to obtain that the commerce of Costa Rica be carried on 
through that place would be to clean, for the distance of one 
or two miles, that branch of the San Juan river which passes 
tlirough the grounds of Punta de Castilla, and cause the latter 
place to communicate, by means of a canal or railroad four 
miles long, with the fresh-water lake formed by the Colorado 
river, which lake is three leagues long, two hundred yards Made, 
and four or five fathoms in depth, and continue from there 
the navigation through the Colorado river, which at no time 
of the year lacks five or six feet in depth in either of its 
branches. 

You will understand, sir, and I pra}'^ you to call the atten- 
tion of the President to this point, tliat these statements are 
made only through the necessity in which I feel myself in 
duty bound to report to the Supreme Government all that I have 
seen and has occurred to me in regard to the subject, which 
I was directed to investigate, but not by any means because 
I liave the pretension to believe that I have found the philos- 
opher's stone, because I know very well that a matter of such 
great importance as this cannot be decided authoritatively, ex- 
cept by one who, besides being competent on the subject, would 
liave time and money, neither of which I unfortunately have. 

In kegakd to the obstacles apprehended generally on 

ACCOUNT of the COMMON RIGHTS OF NICARAGUA AND CoSTA RiCA 
IN THE TOWN OF San JuAN, OWING TO THE LATTER BEING BUILT 
ON NiCARAGUAN TERRITORY, I BELIEVE THAT THEY WOULD BE OB- 
VIATED SHOULD NOT THE TWO REPUBLICS REACH A SETTLEMENT 
UPON SOLID GROUNDS, BY PEOPLING PuNTA DE CaSTILLA,^ WHICH 



" Costa Rican territory. 



195 

AFFORDS SUFFICIENT EXTENT AND FACILITY, AS WELL AS GOOD 
SANITARY CONDITIONS, FOE A VERY GOOD TOWN. IJpON THIS SUB- 
JECT I AM AUTHORIZED BY SEVERAL MERCHANTS AMONG THE RICH- 
EST AND MOST INFLUENTIAL OF San JuAN TO SUGGEST TO THE 

Government that, if no arrangement can be reached with 
Nicaragua, they will move to that place (Punta de 
Castilla), provided that certain concessions are made to 
them. 

As to the point, whether the mouth of the Colorado river is 
accessible or not, all that I can say is that, during the twenty- 
two days I spent in San Juan, the steamer " Active " entered 
the port on four different occasions, and brought passengers 
and cargoes which were transferred to the river boats " Rivas " 
and " Panalaya," and carried through the Colorado river with- 
out any obstacle to Nicaragua. 

Owing to the fact that the Transit Company has suspended 
its work 1 could not obtain a steamboat to ascend the San 
Carlos river ; but the Captain of the boat " El Cora," who made 
that trip last year and went up as far as El Arenal, and four 
merchants of respectability, have requested me to petition the 
legislative body^ for the establishment of a line of steam- 
boats in the said river as soon as possible. Nevertheless, in 
order to form a correct opinion, even approximately, of what 
can be done in this river, I ascended it in a launch of 15 toBs 
burden, which vvas laden with a cargo of about 4 tons, and 
without having encountered any obstacle I spent four and a 
half days in going from the mouth of the San Carlos river 
to the wharf. 

I examined with care the banks of the San Carlos river be- 
tween the old wharf and Penas P>lancas, and I think that the 
harbor must be located at the confluence, and that the town 
must be built upon the angular space formed by the two 
rivers, because the ground there is high, level, and extensive 
enough. 



^ The one of Costa Rica. 



196 

I ENDEAVORED AS EARNESTLY AS I COULD TO INVESTIGATE 
THE PART TAKEN BY THE NlCARAGUAN AUTHORITIES IN THE 
OUTRAGES COMMITTED BY THE CITIZENS OF THAT REPUBLIC AGAINST 
THE GUATUSO InDIANS, ' AND I WAS INFORMED BY TRUSTWORTHY 
PERSONS THAT THE SAID AUTHORITIES, INSTEAD OF FAVORING 
THE WRONGDOERS, MADE AN EFFORT TO PUNISH THEM. 

All that I have said in this report is the result of my own 
personal observation, and if I succeed in obtaining that mv 
humble work l)e of any service to the country and satisfactory 
to the Government you may rest assured that my aspirations 
will be thoroughly fulfilled. 

I have the honor to subscribe myself, your attentive servant, 

E. UEIBE. 

[" Gaceta de Nicaragua," 6th year, No. 31, Managua, Saturday, August 1, 
1868.] 



Costa Rican Indians. 



197 



No. 53. 



The official organ of Nicaragua publishes the estimate of the 
work to he done on the river and port of San Juan ac- 
cording to surveys made hy a mixed cojnmission agreed upon 
hetween the Governments of Costa Rica and Nicaragua. 

The present step is a forward one made by us on the road 
of progress. The present administration, following its ad- 
vanced ideas, directed that a survey of the river and port of 
San Juan del Norte should be made, in harmony with the 
Government of Costa E-ica, for the purpose of making such 
improvements as required by the necessities of the commerce 
of both Republics and the free communication with foreign 
countries through the Atlantic. 

In our preceding issue we published the report of Civil En- 
gineer Don Maxirailiano Sonnenstern ; and now we print the 
estimate of the expenses which will be incurred in the work of 
repairs on the river, port and bay of San Juan, and the meas- 
ures which are to be taken to render it again freely navigable 
by steamboats with all safety. The above-named report makes 
us entertain the hope that the said work so beneficial for the 
two Republics, necessitating no more expense than $76,000.00, 
will be easily carried out, and that a new and flattering future 
will be promised to both countries. 

[" Gaceta de Nicaragua " 6th year, No. 46, Managua, November 14, 1868.] 



198 



No. 54. 

Editorial of the " Gaceta Oficial " of Nicaragua on the re- 
ception in Costa llica of the Nicaragaan Minister^ Don 
Mariano Montealegre. — Costa Rica is recognized as horder- 
inq upon the San Juan river, as joint possessor of the navi- 
gation of the same, and as much interested as Nicaragua in 
the hiteroceanic Canal enterprise. 

Our Legation in Costa Rica. 

On the 10th instant, Don Mariano Montealegre, Envoy Ex- 
traordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary of Nicaragua, near 
the Republic of Costa Rica, was officially received by Presi- 
dent Jimenez. 

On that occasion the customary speeches were made, the 
text of which we print elsewhere. 

From the concise and expressive answer of President 
Jimenez it is to be concluded that his Government feels well 
disposed in regard to the important mission entrusted by Senor 
Guzman to Don Mariano Montealegre. 

Evidence to the same effect is found in tlie courteous 
manner with which the Costa Rican Government received our 
Minister Plenipotentiary. He was not only given the warm- 
est reception, but was admitted in the diplomatic body, before 
being officially presented to the President, in order that he 
could attend the ceremonies of the inauguration of Seiior 
Jimenez as Chief Magistrate of that Republic. 

Nothing else could have been expected, and so we said in 
one of our previous numbers (No. 17), from a Magistrate as 
the one who now rules the destinies of Costa Rica, and from 
the circumstances attending the proclamation of a constitution 
as liberal as the one which is now in force in that Republic. 

" Nicaragua and Costa Rica," President Jimenez says. 



199 

" ABE INDEED CALLED BY NATURE TO SHARE RECIPROCALLY THE 
SAME FATE, AND THEREFORE THEY OUGHT TO STRENGTHEN THEIR 
FRIENDSHIP, PRESERVE PERFECT HARMONY AND UNITE THEIR EF- 
FORTS TO OPEN FOR THEMSELVES THE PATHS OF COMMON PRO- 
GRESS."^ , . 1 u 

These words are indicative of the line of conduct which the 
Government now established in Costa Eica intends to follow 
with the rest of the Central American Eepiiblics, a line of con- 
duct which is to be hoped will be invariably observed by all 
the Central American States among themselves, ^ because they 
all need to preserve their friendship and perfect harmony since 
their welfare and progress is common. 

But Nicaragua and Costa Kiga, more especially still, 

FIND THEMSELVFS IN POSITIONS TO STRENGTHEN MORE AND MORE 
these BONDS, AND OF WORKING WITH THE GREATEST EARNESTNESS 
FOR THE UNITY OF THEIR INTERESTS IN DEFERENCE TO HUMAN PRO- 
GRESS, BECAUSE THEY ARE TOPOGRAPHICALLY SITUATED IN THE 
BEST MANNER POSSIBLE TO ACCOMPLISH THAT PURPOSE. 

The San Juan river, besides dividing the territory of 
THE TWO States, 3 causes the commercial interests of both 

nations to intermix in such a way that NEITHER CAN BE 
INDIFFERENT TO WHAT HAPPENS IN THAT STREAM. 

It has been proved by the most competent experts on the 
subject, that if ever a port can be opened in this hemisphere 
to the commerce of the world, by means of a canal uniting the 
Atlantic with the Pacific Ocean, the only place through which 
that work can be accomplished is the San Juan river. And 
this is the reason why our neighbor must not allow the oppor- 
tunity to pass unnoticed of co-operating in the happiness and 
progress of Nicaragua by accepting the Ayon-Chbvalier con- 



1 In expressing himself in this way the meritorious Don Jesus Jimenez 
was certainly far from thinking that shortly afterwards his sentiments 
would find no better return than the denunciation of the treaty of 1858. 
*The same remark is applicable to these words of the " Gaceta." 
•' Certainly these words are not confirmed by the map appended to the 
Argument of Nicaragua to which the present is a reply. 



200 



TKAcr IN THK PART THEREOF WHICH CORRESPONDS TO HER, sillCe 

ill that way slie will contribute also to her own happiness and 
[)rogress. 

[" Gnceta de Nicaragua," 7th year, No. 21. Managua, Saturday, May 22, 
1869]. 



201 

No. 55. 

The exportation through San Juan de Nicaragua of the nat- 
ural products of the public lands of Costa I?ica, such as 
timber, sarsaparilla, rubber^ balsams, resin, c&c, is pro- 
hibited, in order to prevent the naturcd wecdth of the north- 
ern section of the Republic from being destroyed^ 

Jesus Jimenez, 

Provisional President of the Republic of Costa Rica : 

In order to prevent the valuable natural productions of the 
public lands on the Atlantic side from being destroyed, and 
also to repress smuggling and protect lawful commerce, I do 
hereby decree : 

Article 1. The exportation through San Juan de Nicar- 
agua OF TIMBER, SARSAPARILLA, RUBBER, BALSAMS, RESINS, AND 
ALL OTHER NATURAL PRODUCTS OUT, OR EXTRACTED, OR COLLECTED, 
IN THE FORESTS SITUATED ON THE PUBLIC LANDS OF THE REPUBLIC 

BETWEEN THE Andes AND THE ATLANTIC, is hereby prohibited, 
unless under previous authority given by the Judge of the 
Treasury and by virtue of a contract entered into with the 
Government by proposals and bids. All works undertaken in 
the said locality for the purpose of exporting the said products 
in the manner aforesaid are also prohibited. 

Article 2. Whoever shall violate the provisions of the 
foregoing Article shall lose the cargo so attempted to be carried 
and shall be fined one hundred dollars, or, in default of pay- 
ment, if the person has not sufficient property within the Re- 
public to pay that amount, he shall suffer three months of im- 
prisonment at hard labor. 

Article 3. Revenue posts shall be established in evert 

PLACE OF CONFLUENCE OF THE SaN CaRLOS AND SaRAPIQUI 

RIVERS WITH THE San Juan. Eacli oue of these posts shall be 
commanded by a corporal, who shall have three privates under 
him ; but the number of the latter shall be increased if the 



' This decree was the first germ of the idea of repudiating the treaty of 
1851. 



202 

necessities of the service require it. The corporals shall be 
paid fifty dollars and the guards thirty-live dollars per month 
each. 

Article 4. It shall be the duty of these posts, 1st. To pre- 
vent the exportation of the natural products of the public 
hinds of the Republic, and their being worked or obtained for 
that purpose. 2d. To seize those products already cut down, 
collei-ted or extracted, and send them whenever possible and 
convenient, together with the arrested transgressors, to the 
neaiest authority in order that the latter may cause the pre- 
liminary investigation to be made and submit the record 
thereof, together with the prisoners, to the court which must 
pass sentence. 3d. To seize every article the trade of which 
the Government has reserved for itself and those whose im- 
portation is forbidden, if attempted to be introduced into the 
Republic, and send them, together v^'ith the prisoners, to the near- 
est authority, in the manner and for the purposes above named. 
And 4-th. To watch that no articles of lawful commerce are 
introduced into the country witiiout the formalities prescribed 
by this decree ; to detain those which may be attempted to be 
introduced clandestinely and fraudulently ; and to report with- 
out loss of time to the proper officer, who must declare them 

forfeited. 

■K- ^- ^ * * * 

Article 16. Whoever shall be arrested while making or 

assisting in the exportation of the natural products aforesaid 

without the proper authority and without paying the duties 

established, shall be punished according to the provisions of 

Article 2 of the present decree ; but if it should be found 

out that he has already made the exportation then he shall 

have to pay a double fine or to undergo double time in prison 

at hard labor, whatever the nature and quantity of the exported 

articles may be. 

Given at the National Palace at San Jose on April 28, 1869. 

JESUS JIMENEZ. 

JUAN RAFAEL MAT A, 

Secretary of the Treasury. 



203 



No. 56. 



The territorial jurisdiction of the " Com area " {District) of 
Limon is created.— The limits given to it are from Punta 
de Castilla, frontier of Nicaragua, to the United States of 
Colombia. 

The Provisional Chief Magistrate of the Kepublic, taking 
into consideration the distance which separates the people of 
the northern section of the Republic from this capital, and the 
peculiar necessities of those scattered villages, does hereby de- 
cree : 

Abticle 1. The towns and villages in the Yalley of Matina, 
and along the whole northern littoral of the Repul)lic, fkom 
Punta de Castilla, which is the limit of Nicaragua, ^ down 
to the frontiers of the United States of Colombia, are hereby 
declared to constitute, for all purposes of Government, the 
Comarca or District of Limon, whose capital shall be the vil- 
lage of Moin, where the officers exercising jurisdiction in the 
whole territory of the comarca shall establish their residence. 
Article 2. The Government of the comarca shall be ad- 
ministered in the following way : 

There shall be a Governor, with the functions and powers 
given by law to the provincial Governors. 

There shall be one constitutional Alcalde, exercising the au- 
thority given to the officers of this kind by tlie laws of the 
country. 

There shall be as many justices of the peace as are now, 
or may in the future be established, according to law, in the 
towns or villages and districts belonging to the comarca, and 
the territoi-ial limits within which they shall exercise jurisdic- 
tion shall be fixed, as far as possible, by the Governor. 

There shall also be a military commandant and a harbor- 
master. 

' Treaty of 1858. 



204 

The municipal authority shall be vested in the Governor, 
as provided for l)y law in regard to the comarca of Punta 
Arenas. 

Article 3. In judicial mattei's, the coinarca shall be sub- 
mitted to the jurisdiction of the (jourts of first instance of the 
province of Cartago. 

Akticle 4. For electoral purposes, the comarca shall be 
considered as a district annexed to the canton of El Paraiso, 
in tlie above-named province of Cartago. 

Given at the National Palace, on June C, 1870. 

BRUNO CARRANZA. 
JOAQUIN LIZANO, 
S6i:retary of the Interior. 



205 

No'. 57. 

Origin of the Martinez- Jerez Dtmmvirate. 

[From Memorias para la historia de la cairpana nacinnal contra el 
filibusterismo, 1856, y 57 por Jerouimo Perez. Masaya, 1874.] 

Martinez and Jerez. 

Legitimists and Democrats thought that the continuation of 
the civil war was inevitable, for wliich reason several leaders 
who had been impressed by the danger rnn during the late 
national war, endeavored to bring about some understanding 
between the heads of the two parties. We have a letter of 
General Chamorro wherein he said to Martinez : " It is neces- 
sary for you and for Jerez, as the tvjo men of most prestige, 
to take upon yourselves the task of constituting the liepuhlic, 
and overcorne the dijjicult situation subsequent to Walker'^s 
downfall.'''' 

The two leaders, with a portion of their forces, embarked 
on the steamer San Carlos and landed at Granada, where Mar- 
tinez remained. Jerez reached Leon, receiving the ovations 
of the whole people. General Barrios placed upon his head a 
wreath of laurels. 

Martinez, with several orientals, and Jerez, with several oc- 
cidentals, assembled at Managua, endeavored in vain to make 
an arrangement. " They were about to take leave of each other 
to commence again the fratricidal struggle, when Jerez, in 
company with Don Evaristo Carazo, went to the rooms of 
Martinez, who happened to be in company with Don Ignacio 
Padilla and the author of these Memoirs, and said to him : 
"i)o you wish you and me to assume the power and to govern 
the RepuMic dictatorially until the country is reorganized hy 
us f " Yes, I will, was the answer. And an agreement was 
drawn up and signed establishing the Duumvirate, which, in 
spite of all the predictions to the contrary, not only saved the 
country from the new struggle wliich threatened it, but wisely 
conducted it to its constitutional organization. 



CHRONOLOGICAL EPITOME 

OF 
HISTORICAL FACTS CONNECTED WITH THE TERRITORIAL DEMARCATION 

OF 

COSTA RICA AND NICARAGUA. 



1502. — Fonrtli voyage of Columbng. Discovery of the eastern 
coast of Central America, from Cape Honduras dov^m 
to Portobello and Cape Marmol, embracing the an- 
cient Province of Veragua. 

1509. — The King of Spain erects tlie Governorship of Vera- 
gua in favor of Diego de Nicuesa, f j-om Cape Gracias 
a Dios to the Gnlf of Darien. 

1513. — Discovery of the Pacific Ocean or Southern Sea by 
Vasco Nunez de Balboa. 

1514. — Pedrarias Davila, Governor of Castilla del Oeo, 
lands at Darien. 

1519. — 15th August. Panama founded. 

1519, — Discovery of Bdeica, Gulf of Osa (now Golfo Dulce, 
Costa-Rica), and Gulf of Nicoya. 

1520.— Nata founded. 

1521. — 6th September, Royal ordinance (Real Cedula) fixing 
the l)Oundaries of Panama or Governorship of Cas- 
tilla del Oro, its western limit being the Province of 
Veragua. 

1522. — Discovery of Nicaragua, on the Southern Sea, by Gil 
Gonzalez Davila. 

1524. — Conquest of Nicaragua by Francisco Hernandez de 
Cordoba. The cities of Leon and Granada founded, 

1525. — First survey of Lake Nicaragua by Captain Ruy Diaz, 
who discovers its egress or outlet, el Desaguadero. 

1525. — Hei-nando de Soto surveys the upper part of the Desa- 
guadero, from the lake to the first rapid, near the 



207 

Indian settlement of Voto, on the right or Costa- 
Rican bank of the river. 

1526. — Pedrarias Davila leaves Panama and comes to Nicara- 
gua to quell the rebellion of his lieutenant Francisco 
Hernandez de Cordoba. Cordoba is tried and put 
to death. 

1527. — Pedrarias Davila is superseded as Governor of Castilla 
del Oro by Pedro de los Rios and is appointed Gov- 
ernor and Captain- General of Nicaragua. No 
boundaries were fixed to this Government, which was 
to embrace the lands conquered by Francisco Her- 
nandez de Cordoba on the Southern Sea. 

1529. — Pedrarias Davila sends Martin Estete on a surveying 
expedition to the Desaguadero. Estete goes no 
farther than Captains Ruy Diaz and Hernando de 
Soto, but he lands at Yoto and expL^res Costa Rica 
up to the Suerre river. Gabriel de Rojas, Hernan 
Sanchez de Badajoz, Diego de Castafieda, &c., were 
the principal captains of this campaign. 

1534. — 4th May. Rodrigo de Contreras is appointed Gover- 
nor and Captain-General of Nicaragua, in the same 
manner as Pedrarias Davila. No boundaries were 
marked and Nicaragua remains confined to the South- 
ern Sea. 

1534. — December 24. Felipe Gutierrez is appointed Gover- 
nor of the Province of Yeragua, under reservation 
of the rights of Columbus's heirs, his jurisdiction 
extending from Cape Gracias a Dios down to Castilla 
del Oro. 

1537. — Creation of ths Dukedom of Yeragua, in favor of 
Don Luis Colon, grandson of Columbus. This 
Dukedom comprised, from sea to sea, 25 square 
leagues, between Chiriqui Lagoon (Zarabaro Bay) and 
River Belen. The Province of Yeragua (Costa Rica) 
granted to Felipe Gutierrez was thenceforth bounded 
by the Dukedom of the same name to the southeast 



208 

;ui(l l)j Cape Gracias a Dios to the north, including 
tlie whole Mosquito coast, the rivers Yare, Caxines 
(Escondido), San Juan, Suerre, &c., within the juris- 
diction of Veragua. 

1539. — Captains Alonso Calero and Diego Machuca survey 
the Desaguadero and sail from Lake Nicaragua to 
the sea. 

1539. — Hernan Sanchez de Badajoz is appointed Governor of 
Costa Rica, or Yei-agua, to succeed Felipe Gutierrez. 

1540. — Api'il. Hernan Sanchez de Badajoz lands at the 
mouth of the Rio Tarire (Sixola or Tiliri river) and 
founds the tirst Spanish settlement on the northern 
coast of Costa Rica. The King of Spain did not 
approve the commission of Hernan Sanchez de 
Badajoz. 

1540. — November 29th. Diego Gutierrez, Felipe's brother, 
is appointed Governor of Veragua^ New Cartago or 
Costa Rica. This Province, which, under Felipe, 
ended at Cape Gracias a Dios, was enlarged north- 
wards farther than Cape Camaron to the banks of 
the Rio Grande (River Aguan or Roman). Its 
southern limit was the Dukedom of Veragua. 

1540. — From this date the ducal estate of Yeragua M^as called 
by this name, and the royal province of Yeragua was 
named Cartago or Costa Rica. 

1556. — The Dukedom of Yeragua reverts to the Royal Crown, 
and is incorporated into the Royal domain. 

1560-1573 — NuEvo Cartago or Costa Rica, comprising the 
territory of the Desaguadero,is conquered, settled, and 
governed in succession by Juan Cavallon, Juan Yaz- 
quez de Coronado, Perafan de Ribera. 

15T2. — Perafan de Ribera, Governor of Costa Rica, is ap- 
pointed Corregidor of Nicoya. 

1573. — December 1st. — Philip H appoints Diego de Artieda 
Governor and Captain-General of Costa Rica, and 
marks the boundaries of this Province, as follows : 



209 

In latitude, from sea to sea ; and in longitude on the 
Caribbean Sea, from the San Juan river, the main 
outlet or Desaguadero of Lake Nicaragua, to the 
confines of Yeragua (the Escudo de Yeragua), and 
on the Southern Sea, from the limits of Nicoya to the 
valleys of Chiriqui (River Chiriqui Yiejo). 
1573. — Diego de Artieda is appointed Governor of Nicoya. 
1576. — The eai-ly Province of Nuevo Cartago or Costa Rica 
reduced to the boundaries marked by Philip II in 
1573. A new province was created to the north of 
the Desaguadero, called the Province of Taguzgalpa. 
Its limits were from the northern mouth of the San 
Juan river alongside the coast to Cape Camaron, and 
all the land between the sea and the' boundary line 
of Nicaragua, Nueva Segovia, and Honduras. 
The jurisdiction of Nicaragua did not go beyond fifteen 
leagues from the lake shore to the east. It is plain by the 
demarcation of Costa Rica in 1573, and by that of Taguz- 
galpa in 1576, giving to these Provinces the full jurisdiction 
on the Desaguadero from its mouths to fifteen leagues from 
the lake, that Nicaragua did not possess an inch of territory 
on the Caribbean Sea, at the end of the XYIth century, when 
the territorial status of the Audiencia of Guatemala was finally 
regulated. 

The Taguzgalpa or Mosquito coast, from 1509 to 1573, a part 
of Yeragua, Nuevo Cartago, or Costa Rica, remained unsettled 
and open to piratical invasions during the XYlIth century. 
The English settled at Rio Tinto (Black River), Cape Gracias 
a Dios and Bluefields, or afforded protection to the Mosquito 
Indians. 

By the treaty of Yersailles of 1783 between Spain and Eng. 
land, this lattir Power agreed to evacuate the settlements 
aforesaid. A more comprehensive and precise engagement 
was entered into by the additional treaty of London of 1786 
between the same parties. England was compelled to evacuate 
the Mosquito coast ; but she did not give up the hope of having 
14 



210 

a permanent footing tlierc, and, though apparently complying 
with her treatv obligations, she devised means to elude them 
pnKtticallv, and encoui'aged some private individuals to submit 
to the Spanish law, to become Spanish subjects, and to ask 
grants of lands, itc. This was the case with Col. Robert Hodg- 
son, to whose endeavors the Mosquito protectorate of modern 
times owes filial regard. Spain, however, recovered the control 
of the Mosquito coast which was placed directly under the mili- 
tiiry supervision of the Captain-General of Guatemala. 



ERKATA. 



Page. 



IV 
27 

And wherever else 

found. 

51 

66 

97 

103 

110 



117 



119 
134 

164 
167 
171 

172 

181 



Line. 



16 

29 



4 
5 

4 

8 

27 

a 

31 
17 
25 

27 

25 

12 

21 

2 

8 

9 

10 

25 

26 



Beads 



Tausgalpa 
San Cdrlos 



1828 
fory 
place 
May, 1813 
Escacii 

Cucurrique 

the 

Feaejanes 

Blasco 

1881 

Totogalpa 

Gorge 

Sarapiqui 

1858 

Posaltega 

Posalteguilla 

San Gorge 

1849 



Should Head 



Taguzgalpa 
San Carlos 



1826 

for 

placed 

1812 

Escasxi 

Tucurrique 

an 

Feaijanes 

Blanco 

1831 

Tologalpa 

Jorge 

Sarapiqui 

1838 

Posoltega 

Posolteguilla 

San Jorge 

1859 



my -0 .!3/,3 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 




